*    MAR  14  1907  * 


BX  7260   .T78  H68  1905  ) 
Howard,  Philip  E.  1870-1946: 
The  life  story  of  Henry  Cla 
Trumbull 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2014 


https://archive.org/details/lifestoryofhenryOOhowa_0 


THE  LIFE  STORY  OF 
HENRY  CLAY  TRUMBULL 


The  Life  Story  of 
Henry  Clay  Trumbull 

Missionary,  Army  Chaplain, 
Editor,  and  Author 


By  Philip  E.  Howard 


With  an  Introduction  by 
Charles  Gallaudet  Trumbull 


PHILADELPHIA 
THE  SUNDAY  SCHOOL  TIMES  CO. 
1905 


Copyright,  1904,  1905,  by 
The  Sunday  School  Times  Company 


Copyright,  1905,  by 
Philip  E.  Howard 


INTRODUCTION 


HAT  the  world  at  large  could  not  know  of 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull,  and  what  no  man  can 
tell  of  himself,  this  book  reveals.  As  editor, 
writer,  explorer,  expositor,  chaplain,  missionary,  the 
world  has  known  him  ;  now  it  may  know  him  as 
something  better  than  all  these.  More  than  one  who 
had  known  Dr.  Trumbull  at  a  distance,  through  a 
single  branch  of  his  varied  and  multiplied  achieve- 
ments, and  who  later  came  to  know  him  face  to  face, 
was  surprised  at  finding  him  not  the  man  they  had 
expected.  But  no  man,  woman,  or  child,  was  ever 
heard  to  express  disappointment  in  what  the  real 
Henry  Clay  Trumbull  was  found  to  be.  And  it  is  in 
all  confidence  in  the  subject  of  this  biography,  and  in 
the  work  which  the  biographer  has  done,  that  the 
conviction  is  here  expressed  that  no  man  can  read  the 
pages  of  this  life  story  and  be  disappointed. 

The  secret  of  this  sweeping  confidence  becomes  in- 
creasingly apparent  as  one  reads  this  book.  The 
master  passion  of  Henry  Clay  Trumbull's  life  was 
friendship  for  individuals.  The  coming  of  an  individual 
across  his  horizon  seemed  to  be  an  instant  challenge  to 
his  love.  There  was  only  one  way  he  knew,  to  meet 
that  challenge ;  and  that  was  to  find  out,  in  the  shortest 
possible  time,  how  he  could  in  some  way  lovingly  serve 
this  new  life  that  God  had  brought  across  his  path.  It 


V 


vi 


Introduction 


was  an  instinctive  recognizing,  long  before  he  knew 
anything  about  the  primitive  East,  of  the  sacred  and 
primal  obligations  of  hospitality.  There  was  no  such 
thing,  in  his  life,  as  an  ''accidental  meeting."  As  the 
strangers  seen  from  the  door  of  the  tent  of  Abraham 
were  welcomed  as  visitors  from  God  before  Abraham 
knew  that  they  were  indeed  heavenly  messengers,  so 
the  stranger,  or  the  acquaintance,  or  the  friend,  or  the 
relative,  who  came  to  the  tent-door  of  Trumbull's  life, 
was  not  allowed  to  depart  until  some  loving  service 
had  been  rendered  by  this  self-constituted  host.  And 
people  are  not  likely  to  be  disappointed  in  a  man 
who  meets  them  always  more  than  half-way  in  eager 
desire  to  serve. 

So  it  was  that  the  phrase  "passion  for  souls"  had 
little  place  in  this  man's  life  except  as  it  meant  loving 
interest  in  one  soul  at  a  time.  Dr.  Trumbull  never 
looked  at  things  or  at  people  collectively.  If  he 
swayed  audiences  of  thousands  as  a  public  speaker,  it 
was  because  he  was  speaking  with  the  needs  of  one  in 
the  audience  primarily  in  mind.  If  an  editorial  from 
his  pen  brought  a  message  from  God  straight  to  the 
hearts  of  a  hundred  thousand  readers,  it  was  because 
he  was  writing  to  help  one  soul  who  needed  help. 
His  individual  leading  of  souls  to  Christ  was  only  a 
single  manifestation  of  this  overmastering,  selfless  love 
for  individuals  which  dominated  his  life.  He  was  no 
less  interested,  but  rather  more,  in  an  individual,  after 
that  one  had  been  brought  to  Christ.  And  whether 
one  was  within  or  without  the  Christian  faith.  Gentile 
or  Jew,  Roman  Catholic  or  Muhammadan,  it  mattered 
not,  if  in  any  way  he  could  serve  that  one. 


Introduction 


vii 


So  completely  has  the  personality  of  the  biographer 
been  eliminated  from  these  pages  that  it  is  only  fair  to 
the  public  that  there  should  be  a  word  in  this  introduc- 
tion about  him.  Philip  E.  Howard  married  one  of  Dr. 
Trumbull's  daughters  in  1 891,  the  year  of  his  gradua- 
tion from  the  University  of  Pennsylvania.  He  had  been 
pursuing  his  college  course  with  the  intention  of  enter- 
ing the  ministry.  But  the  death  of  Mrs.  Trumbull 
that  summer,  and  the  rapidly  failing  health  of  John  D. 
Wattles,  Dr.  Trumbull's  son-in-law  and  partner  and 
the  business  head  of  The  Sunday  School  Times,  led 
Dr.  Trumbull  to  urge  upon  Mr.  Howard,  as  a  call 
from  God,  his  associating  himself  with  The  Sunday 
School  Times.  Mr.  Howard  accepted  this  call  as 
God's  plan  for  his  ministry.  Upon  Mr.  Wattles' 
death,  in  1893,  Mr.  Howard  was  made  publisher  of 
the  paper,  and  upon  Dr.  Trumbull's  death  in  1903  he 
was  elected  President  of  The  Sunday  School  Times 
Company. 

Thus  Mr.  Howard  was  a  member  of  Dr.  Trumbull's 
family,  and  his  intimate  business  associate  and  part- 
ner, during  the  last  twelve  years  of  the  older  man's 
life.  Only  one  who  was  in  this  way  an  integral  part 
of  Dr.  Trumbull's  daily  business  and  home-life,  and 
who  was  in  absolute  oneness  with  him  in  his  excep- 
tional standards  and  principles  of  life  and  conduct, 
could  have  interpreted  that  life  to  the  world  as  the 
biographer  has  done. 

Charles  Gallaudet  Trumbull. 


AUTHOR'S  NOTE 


In  addition  to  those  who  are  specifically  quoted  in  this 
volume,  there  are  many  others  to  whom  the  author  owes 
a  Hke  debt  of  gratitude.  Mr.  J.  Henry  Lea's  Contri- 
bution to  a  Trumbull  Genealogy ' '  furnishes  facts  not 
generally  known  even  to  students  of  that  theme  ;  Judge 
Richard  A.  Wheeler's  History  of  the  Town  of  Stoning- 
ton ' '  is  indispensable  to  one  who  would  have  any  true 
conception  of  that  historic  borough  as  it  was  a  half  cen- 
tury ago  and  earUer.  And  no  one  can  trace  at  all  the 
magnificent  pioneer  and  nurturing  work  of  the  American 
Sunday  School  Union  apart  from  the  close  and  thorough 
researches  of  the  editor  of  the  Union  pubUcations,  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Edwin  W.  Rice,  whose  aid  and  whose  courtesy 
the  author  desires  to  acknowledge  with  hearty  apprecia- 
tion. 

Moreover,  such  books  as  Walker's  History  of  the 
First  Church  in  Hartford;"  Lawrence's  "The  Life  of 
Joel  Hawes,  D.D. ;  "  the  "Autobiography  of  Charles  G. 
Finney;"  B.  Paxson  Drury's  "A  Fruitful  Life," — the 
story  of  Stephen  Paxson* s  life-work;  "Sunday-School 
Movements  in  America,"  by  Marianna  C.  Brown,  and 
other  books  of  similar  usefulness,  have  furnished  valued 
information,  or  have  proved  suggestive  in  a  further  search 
for  facts. 

To  Mr.  Julius  G.  Rathbun  of  Hartford  the  author's 
indebtedness  is  gratefully  acknowledged,  for  many  facts 
about  the  Morgan  Street  Mission ;  to  Mr.  Albert  C. 
viii 


Author's  Note 


ix 


Bates,  librarian  of  the  Connecticut  Historical  Society,  and 
to  Mr.  Frank  B.  Gay,  librarian  of  the  Watkinson  Library, 
for  access  to  facts  not  readily  obtainable,  and  in  par- 
ticular for  copies  of  ' '  Lux  Mundi, ' '  Henry  Clay  Trum- 
bull's  first  editorial  charge  ;  to  Mrs.  Annie  Trumbull  Slos- 
son  for  reminiscences  of  her  brother's  childhood  ;  to  Mr. 
Leroy  Bliss  Peckham,  who  is  the  traveler  mentioned  on  page 
463  ;  to  the  Rev.  Dr.  J.  H.  Sawyer,  principal  of  WiUiston 
Seminary,  and  to  Miss  Lucy  Rodman,  for  aid  in  securing 
facts  about  his  school  life ;  to  Miss  Annie  Ehot  Trumbull, 
to  President  Edward  M.  Gallaudet,  and  to  other  members 
and  relatives  of  the  Trumbull  family  for  notes  upon  his 
characteristics.  The  main  sources  of  material  for  the  life- 
story  are  found  in  a  voluminous  correspondence  of  fifty 
years  and  more  ;  in  Dr.  Trumbull's  pubhshed  and  un- 
published writings  ;  in  the  files  of  contemporary  periodi- 
cals ;  in  diaries  and  miscellaneous  jottings,  and  in  the 
memory  of  a  daily  and  intimate  discipleship. 


CHRONOLOGY 


Born,  at  Stonington,  Connecticut  June  8,  1830 

At  School  in  Stonington  Academy  August  i,  1839 

Attending  Williston  Seminary  1844 

Clerk  in  bank  and  railroad  office  1849 

Removed  to  Hartford  September,  1851 

Brought  to  Christ  by  a  friend's  letter  .  .  .  February  21,  1852 
Elected  Superintendent  Morgan  St.  Mission  .  .  April  18,  1852 
United  with  First  Congregational  Church, 

Hartford  June  6,  1852 

Married  Alice  Cogswell  Gallaudet  May  23,  1854 

Partner  in  drug  business  February  i,  1856 

Joined  Fremont  Club  July  16,  1856 

First  Sunday-school  convention  address  .  .  .  April  28,  1857 

Member  State  Republican  Committee  1858 

Offered  appointment  by  Gov.  Buckingham  .   .   April  10,  1858 

Entered  wool  business  .1858 

Entered  Sunday-school  field  work  ....  September  i,  1858 

Ordained  as  Chaplain  September  10,  1862 

Taken  prisoner  on  Morris  Island  July  19,  1863 

Released  from  prison  November,  1863 

Death  of  his  friend,  Henry  Ward  Camp  .   .  October  13,  1864 

Mustered  out  of  army  service  August  25,  1865 

Appointed  Secretary  for  New  England  Depart- 
ment of  American  Sunday  School  Union  .  October,  1865 

Degree  of  M.  A.  from  Yale  July,  1866 

Appointed  Normal  Secretary  of  American 

Sunday  School  Union  October,  1871 

Appointed  Chairman  National  Sunday- 
school  Convention  Executive  Committee  1871 

Became  editor  of  The  Sunday  School  Times  September  11,  1875 

X 


Chronology 


xi 


Bought  The  Sunday  School  Times  August  25,  1877 

Welcomed  U.  S.  Grant  to  Philadelphia  .   .  December  18,  1879 

Sailed  for  Europe  January,  1881 

Finding  Kadesh-barnea  March  30,  1881 

Degree  of  D.  D.  from  Lafayette  1881 

Degree  of  D.  D.  from  University  of  the  City  of  New  York,  1882 

Prayer  at  Grant's  funeral  August  8,  1885 

Chosen  Chaplain-in-Chief  of  the  Commandery- 

in-Chief  of  the  Loyal  Legion  .   .  .   ,   .  October  20,  1886 

Preaching  at  Northfield  June  30,  1888 

Death  of  Mrs.  Trumbull  August  23,  1891 

Preaching  at  Northfield  July  3,  1892 

Death  of  partner,  John  D.  Wattles  March  21,  1893 

Sailed  for  Europe  July,  1895 

Prayer  at  dedication  of  Grant's  mausoleum  .  .  April  27,  1897 
Entered  into  the  new  life  December  8,  1903 

BOOKS  WRITTEN  BY  HENRY  CLAY  TRUMBULL 

The  Knightly  Soldier  April  21,  1865 

A  Useful  Life  and  a  Fragrant  Memory  1866 

Falling  in  Harness  1867 

The  Captured  Scout  of  the  Army  of  the  James  1868 

Children  in  the  Temple  December  15,  1868 

Review  Exercises  in  the  Sunday-school  1873 

A  Model  Superintendent  1880 

Kadesh-Barnea  December  i,  1883 

Teaching  and  Teachers  September,  1884 

The  Blood  Covenant  August  14,  18S5 

Yale  Lectures  on  the  Sunday-School  .  .  .  September  i,  1888 
Principles  and  Practice  : 

Ourselves  and  Others  August  14,  1889 

Aspirations  and  Influences  

Seeing  and  Being   " 

Practical  Paradoxes  

Character-Shaping  and  Character-Showing, 

Duty-Knowing  and  Duty-Doing  


xii 


Chronology 


Hints  on  Child  Training  September  15,  1890 

Friendship  the  Master  Passion  September  15,  1891 

Ten  Commandments  as  a  Covenant  of  Love  1892 

Two  Northfield  Sermons  1892 

Light  on  the  Story  of  Jonah  December  30,  1891 

A  Lie  Never  Justifiable  August  14,  1893 

Studies  in  Oriental  Social  Life  May  14,  1894 

The  Threshold  Covenant  Passover  Week,  1 896 

Prayer  :  Its  Nature  and  Scope  February  25,  1896 

In  Tribulation  1896 

Teachers' -Meetings  1896 

Hints  on  Bible  Study  (with  others)  1898 

War  Memories  of  an  Army  Chaplain  ....  September,  1898 

The  Covenant  of  Salt  October,  1899 

Border  Lines  in  the  Field  of  Doubtful  Practices  .  April,  1899 

Illustrative  Answers  to  Prayer  June  8,  1900 

Individual  Work  for  Individuals  June  8,  1901 

Old  Time  Student  Volunteers  June  8,  1902 

My  Four  Religious  Teachers  June  8,  1903 

How  to  Deal  with  Doubts  and  Doubters  .  September  11,  1903 
Shoes  and  Rations  for  a  Long  March  .   ,  .  October  23,  1903 


CONTENTS 

The  Man  Himself   3 

I 

His  Family   9 

II 

Heroes  of  the  Stonington  Days  21 

HI 

In  School  and  Out  37 

IV 

Early  Literary  Tendencies  49 

V 

Building  Railroads  and  Character  67 

VI 

The  Spiritual  Awakening  79 

VII 

Lights  and  Shadows  of  an  Old-Time  Mission  School,  103 

VIII 

In  the  Home  of  the  Gallaudets  123 

IX 

Mixing  Politics  and  Religion  135 

X 

Sunday-School  Field  Work  in  the  Fifties   .  .  .  .147 

xiii 


xiv 


Co?i  tents 


XI 

Entering  Army  Life  175 

XII 

A  Soldier  Friendship  in  Field  and  Prison  .  .  .  .195 

XIII 

Saving  Life  and  Souls  in  the  Army  217 

XIV 

Secrets  of  Power  in  Word  and  Work  235 

XV 

Learning  to  See  Spiritual  Truth  255 

XVI 

Living  the  Life  of  Prayer  267 

XVII 

Guided  to  the  Editorial  Chair  279 

XVIII 

Daring  the  Impossible  299 

XIX 

A  Practical  Idealist  at  Work  315 

XX 

The  Finding  of  Kadesh-barnea  331 

XXI 

The  Aftermath  of  Kadesh  347 

XXII 

A  Writer  of  "Marked  Books"  363 


Contents 


XV 


XXIII 

His  Ministry  to  Individuals  375 

XXIV 

A  Passion  for  Rightness  391 

XXV 

Power  Through  Sensitiveness  403 

XXVI 

Determining  the  Border  Lines  419 

XXVII 

Correcting  Common  Errors  About  Bible  Truths  .  .  433 
XXVIII 

Showing  Reserve  Power  Towards  Life's  Close  .  .  .  445 

XXIX 

As  a  Man  Among  Men  463 

XXX 

The  Upper  Room  491 

Appendix  and  Index  507 

PORTRAITS 

Facing 
Page 

Frontispiece 

At  the  age  of  23  108 

At  the  age  of  30  180 

At  the  age  of  35  •   •  224 

At  the  age  of  45  304 

At  the  age  of  58  378 


THE  MAN  HIMSELF 


In  man  as  man,  the  one  unifying  factor,  with- 
out which  man  can  never  be  at  his  best  or  do 
his  best,  is  the  faith  factor.  That  which  distin- 
guishes man  from  all  the  lower  orders  of  crea- 
tion is  the  ability  to  recognize  the  unseen  and 
the  infinite,  and  to  rest  on  the  felt  presence  of 
Him  who  is  all  and  in  all,  of  the  universe  of  his 
creating  and  controlling.  In  the  lack  of  a  per- 
sonal faith  in  God  as  his  God,  no  man  can  be 
what  he  ought  to  be,  or  do  what  he  ought  to  do. 
Without  this  faith,  a  man  cannot  work  or  study 
in  assured  confidence  o^  results  ;  nor  can  he  see 
the  past,  the  present,  or  the  future,  in  the  light 
in  which  alone  all  its  facts  and  teachings  are 
intelligible  and  consistent.  With  this  faith,  a 
man  can  stand,  as  it  were,  at  the  very  center  of 
the  universe,  and  look  out  over  the  vast  sweep 
of  God's  providences,  in  simple  confidence  that 
all  things  are  working  together  for  his  good  ; 
since  his  Father  orders  them  all,  and  he  is  in 
loving  union  with  God  through  his  union  by 
faith  with  Him  who  is  one  with  the  Father. — 
Character-Shaping  and  Character-Showing, 


THE  MAN  HIMSELF 


No  one  who  ever  met  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  in 
even  the  most  casual  way  could  fail  to  perceive  that 
he  was  face  to  face  with  a  personality  of  extraordinary 
mold.  He  seemed  to  be  exactly  what  he  was, — a 
delicately  sensitive,  perfectly  adjusted,  rigidly  con- 
trolled piece  of  divinely  devised  mechanism,  undam- 
aged by  misuse,  and  impelled  by  the  soul  within  to  a 
high  and  tense  efficiency. 

There  could  be  no  rust,  or  gloom,  or  fearsome  fore- 
bodings, or  any  morbidness,  where  he  was.  His  tem- 
perament was  buoyant,  fiery,  and  passionate ;  and  yet 
no  voice  was  gentler  than  his,  no  tenderness  more 
veritable  and  appealing,  no  handclasp  more  reassur- 
ing. His  abounding  spirit  of  good  fellowship  and 
his  instant  interest  in  others  were  irresistibly  mag- 
netic, while  his  utter  hatred  of  evil  in  any  guise 
set  him  sharply  over  against  any  defense  of  the 
wrong. 

He  was  never  one  to  stand  aloof  from  the  sweep  of 
events.  He  was  nurtured  as  a  boy  in  an  atmosphere 
of  achievement.  As  a  young  man  he  learned  how 
to  work  hard  and  continuously,  and  as  he  came  into 
maturity  he  found  himself  powerfully  attracted  by  the 
problems  of  the  great  days  in  which  he  showed  him- 
self so  thoroughly  at  home.  His  awakened  interest 
in  Christian  service,  his  high-minded  and  peculiarly 

3 


4  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


efficient  devotion  to  political  problems  and  their  out- 
working, his  burning  zeal  as  a  chaplain  in  the  Federal 
Army,  and  extended  observation  in  his  own  land  and 
abroad,  aroused  his  generous  nature  to  a  conscious- 
ness of  what  a  man  might  do  in  meeting  the  needs 
of  other  men,  and  furnished  him  with  a  wealth  of  ex- 
perience exceedingly  rare  and  fruitful.  To  this  fund 
of  experience  he  never  ceased  to  add.  Even  in  his 
later  years,  when  his  memory  was  reviving  the  ful- 
ness and  fascination  of  the  old  days,  he  had  a  boy's 
keen  eye  for  everything  new  and  of  to-day. 

Dr.  Trumbull  never  concerned  himself  with  the 
•discussion  of  anything  that  did  not  seem  to  him  fun- 
damental. His  mind  sought  centers  and  foundations. 
Men  who  tried  to  draw  him  into  argument  found 
themselves  confronted  with  statements  of  principles 
by  which  all  cases  must  be  tested.  His  constant 
search  in  ethics  was  for  principles,  and  he  carried  the 
same  thirst  for  inner  truth  into  every  phase  of  his 
varied  life-work. 

Thorough  as  he  was  in  everything  he  did,  quick  to 
see  a  full  truth  long  before  most  men  had  caught  a 
glimmer  of  it,  he  was  ever  learning,  rising  to  higher 
levels  of  ideals  and  purposes.  His  love  of  truth  was 
the  touchstone  of  his  character.  At  any  cost  he  must 
know.  No  labor  was  too  great,  no  amount  of  time 
too  precious,  for  the  tracking  down  and  the  working 
out  of  what  he  wished  to  see  or  to  make  clear  to 
others.  He  was  wholly  untrammeled  by  what  any 
one  else  had  thought  or  asserted.  Always  welcoming 
light  from  those  whose  character  and  views  he  re- 
spected, he  nevertheless  made  his  own  conclusions, 


The  Man  Himself 


5 


and  stated  them  with  directness  and  conviction,  with- 
out regard  to  the  minor  question  of  their  acceptance 
by  others. 

All  this  was  peculiarly  evident  in  his  later  life 
whenever  he  dealt  with  a  Bible  teaching.  He  had 
gained  the  Oriental  viewpoint.  He  was  not  a  literal- 
ist,  but  an  interpreter  of  the  letter,  perceiving  with 
Bushnell  that  the  Gospel  is  a  "  gift  to  the  imagina- 
tion," in  its  inspired  setting  forth  of  truth.  This 
attitude  enabled  him  to  get  at  the  very  heart  of  the 
Scriptures,  and  to  understand  much  that  was  not 
clear  to  the  purely  Occidental  mind.  And  because 
his  interpretations  sprang  from  the  Book  itself  and 
from  his  vivid  knowledge  of  Oriental  habits  of 
thought,  he  never  ceased  to  throw  light  upon  the 
tangled  way  of  biblical  interpretation. 

To  him  the  Bible  was  no  book  of  rules,  but  a  book 
of  divinely  revealed  principles.  From  that  viewpoint 
he  taught  that  one  must  not  look  to  the  Scriptures 
for  categorical  answers  to  every  problem  of  life  and 
character,  but  for  something  far  higher, — the  eternal, 
unchanging  principles  by  which  all  thought  and  con- 
duct must  be  tested. 

Unlike  many  other  versatile  men,  Henry  Clay  Trum- 
bull was  a  master  in  whatever  field  he  made  his  own, 
for  each  work  that  he  took  upon  himself  was  at  the  mo- 
ment the  supreme  work,  his  life-work.  What  he  had 
done  hitherto  was  nothing.  The  work  of  now  was 
everything,  and  the  thought  that  there  was  so  much 
more  to  do  spurred  him  on  into  an  intellectual 
and  spiritual  productivity  that  brooked  no  waste  of 
strength  or  time. 


6  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


To  trace  the  growth  of  a  singularly  strong  and  lofty- 
character,  to  mark  the  unfolding  of  divine  purpose  in 
a  marvelously  varied  human  life,  to  walk  through 
shadow  and  sunshine  with  one  in  whom  friendship 
was  the  master-passion,  to  find  how  a  God-led  man 
did  the  impossible,  and  how,  resting  only  "  between 
heart-beats,"  he  toiled  that  men  might  see  the  truth, 
— that  is  the  purpose  of  this  story  of  a  man  with  an 
iron  will  to  do  only  his  Master's  will,  and  with  the 
joyous,  trusting  spirit  of  a  little  child. 


HIS  FAMILY 


And  as  to  your  family,  my  young  friend,  if 
you  are  doing  more  nobly  than  your  grandfather 
did,  you  may  well  rejoice  that  he  lived  an  hon- 
ored life  ;  but  it  were  better  for  you  to  have 
been  a  Bushman  of  South  Africa,  and  improved 
all  your  privileges  and  opportunities,  than  to 
belong  to  one  of  the  best  old  families  of  Massa- 
chusetts or  Virginia,  and  not  make  a  gain  on  its 
record.  The  question  is,  not  whether  you  are 
proud  of  your  grandfather,  but  whether  your 
grandfather  would  be  proud  of  you.  —  Our  Duty 
of  Making  the  Past  a  Success,  a  sermon 
preached  in  the  Northfield  Students'  Confer- 
ence,  July  j,  i8g2. 


CHAPTER  I 


HIS  FAMILY 

For  the  Trumbull  origin  one  must  look  to  the 
Scottish  border  countries,  and  the  romantic  days  of 
King  Robert  Bruce  in  the  dawn  of  the  fourteenth 
century.  It  is  of  no  small  significance  that  the  Trum- 
bull, or  Turnbull,  clan  should  have  had  its  beginning 
in  a  daring  deed  of  service,  a  heritage  of  noblesse  oblige 
held  in  honor  by  all  who  bear  the  name  then  earned. 

It  was  in  the  forest  near  Stirling  that  the  first  of  the 
clan  found  his  opportunity,  when  he,  a  strong-armed 
hunter,  saved  the  life  of  none  other  than  Robert  Bruce 
himself 

"  Between  red  ezlarbanks,  that  frightful  scowl, 
Fringed  with  grey  hazel,  roars  the  mining  RouU  ; 
Where  Turnbulls  once,  a  race  no  power  could  awe, 
Lined  the  rough  skirts  of  stormy  Rubieslaw. 
Bold  was  the  chief  from  whom  their  line  they  drew. 
Whose  nervous  arm  the  furious  bison  slew. 
The  bison,  fiercest  race  of  Scotia' s  breed, 
Whose  bounding  course  outstripped  the  red  deer's  speed, 
By  hunters  chafed,  encircled  on  the  plain, 
He  frowning  shook  his  yellow  lion  maine, 
Spurned  with  black  hoof  in  bursting  rage  the  ground, 
And  fiercely  toss'd  his  moony  horns  around. 
On  Scotia's  lord  he  rush'd  with  lightning  speed, 
Bent  his  strong  neck  to  toss  the  startled  steed  ; 
His  arms  robust  the  hardy  hunter  flung 

9 


lo  He7iry  Clay  Trumbull 


Around  his  bending  horns,  and  upward  wrung, 
With  writhing  force  his  neck  retorted  round, 
And  roU'd  the  panting  monster  on  the  ground. 
Crush' d  with  enormous  strength  his  bony  skull  ; 
And  courtiers  hailed  the  man  who  turned  the  bull.'* 

This  deed  was  honored  by  the  king  in  a  grant  of 
land  and  in  the  knighting  of  his  rescuer  with  the  sur- 
name of  Turnbull.  In  the  border  warfare  of  the  fif- 
teenth and  sixteenth  centuries  the  clan  Turnbull,  too 
powerful  to  please  the  kings  of  Scotland,  and  suffering 
from  a  feud  with  another  clan,  became  broken  and 
scattered,  and  their  descendants  were  found  in  parts 
of  Scotland,  in  England,  and  then  in  the  new  world  on 
this  side  the  sea. 

Henry  Clay  Trumbull  was  born  in  Stonington, 
Connecticut,  on  June  8,  1830.  His  father  was  Gurdon 
Trumbull,  a  son  of  John  Trumbull  of  Norwich  Town, 
Connecticut,  whose  earliest  American  progenitor  was 
John  Trumbull  of  Charlestown,  Massachusetts,  a  mas- 
ter mariner  who  came  to  America  from  his  English 
home  about  1636.  His  mother  was  Sarah  Ann  Swan, 
a  descendant  of  William  Chesebrough  and  of  Walter 
Palmer,  the  earliest  settlers  of  Stonington,  and  also  of 
Captain  George  Denison  and  Thomas  Stanton,  the 
former  a  noted  Indian  fighter,  and  the  latter  an  inter- 
preter in  all  dealings  of  the  colonists  with  the  power- 
ful Pequot  tribe,  whose  lands  once  included  the 
ground  upon  which  Stonington  stands.  From  Wal- 
ter Palmer  General  Grant  was  a  direct  descendant. 

It  has  been  supposed  by  many  outside  the  family 
that  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  was  a  descendant  of  Jona- 
than Trumbull,  the  war  Governor  of  Connecticut  in 


His  Fa^nily 


Revolutionary  days,  friend  and  adviser  of  Washington, 
the  "  Brother  Jonathan  "  of  our  American  vernacular. 
Such,  however,  is  not  the  case,  although  the  famous 
war  Governor  and  the  TrumbuUs  of  Norwich  are 
apparently  of  the  same  clan.  No  complete  genealogy 
of  the  Trumbull  family  has  ever  been  prepared,  not- 
withstanding the  conspicuous  part  that  so  many  mem- 
bers of  that  family  have  had  in  American  life. 

John  Trumbull  of  Norwich  edited  and  published 
the  Norwich  Packet.  After  his  death,  in  1802,  his 
wife,  with  four  of  her  sons, — Samuel,  Henry,  Gurdon, 
and  John  F., — carried  on  the  newspaper.  As  early 
as  October  2,  1798,  Samuel  Trumbull  issued  in  Ston- 
ington  the  first  number  of  The  Journal  and  Times, 
whose  motto  was : 

"  Pliant  as  reeds  where  streams  of  freedom  glide  ; 
Firm  as  the  hills  to  stem  oppression's  tide." 

When  the  Norwich  TrumbuUs  removed  to  Stoning- 
ton,  they  came  into  a  community  where  historic  asso- 
ciations with  colonial  struggles  were  peculiarly  vivid. 
And  they  were  to  have  no  small  part  in  the  mak- 
ing of  local  history,  which,  in  its  pioneer  and  repre- 
sentative aspects,  had  its  bearings  on  the  history  of 
the  nation. 

Stonington  is  so  situated  that  its  very  location 
gave  it  prominence  among  towns  of  the  early  days. 
It  is  close  to  the  ocean  end  of  Long  Island  Sound. 
It  offers  a  good  harbor  and  anchorage  for  vessels  of 
every  sort,  and  in  both  the  Revolutionary  War  and 
the  War  of  18 12,  it  was  a  favorite  port  for  privateers. 
On  August  30,  1775,  Comnioilorc  James  Wallace,  in 


12  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


the  British  Frigate  Rose,  led  an  attack  on  the  village. 
He  bombarded  the  town,  which  was  defended  with 
old  Queen  Anne  muskets;  and  after  having  been 
repulsed  by  the  villagers,  among  whom  only  one 
man  was  wounded,  he  remained  near  that  bristling 
coast  a  week  and  finally  sailed  away. 

Again,  in  1 8 14,  an  attack  was  made  by  a  fleet  under 
Commodore  T.  M.  Hardy,  in  whose  arms  Lord  Nelson 
died.  With  two  eighteen-pounders  and  two  six- 
pounders,  the  New  England  men  drove  off  the  fleet 
with  no  loss  among  themselves.  Gurdon  Trumbull 
shared  in  this  famous  defense,  fired  the  first  gun  from 
the  shore,  and  was  the  bearer  of  a  flag  to  the  com- 
mander of  the  fleet  on  behalf  of  the  civil  authorities 
of  the  town,  in  declining  to  accede  to  a  demand  from 
the  attacking  force.  Mr.  Trumbull  told  his  son 
Henry  that  Hardy,  during  the  conference  on  his 
ship,  pointed  to  a  lounge  or  settee  in  the  cabin,  a 
relic  of  his  old  ship  Victory,  saying :  *'  It  may  inter- 
est you,  gentlemen,  to  know  that  on  that  couch  Lord 
Nelson  lay  in  his  death,  after  I  had  given  him  my 
parting  embrace." 

Gurdon  Trumbull  was  a  self-educated  man.  He 
had  worked  as  a  young  man  in  his  father's  newspaper 
office.  In  his  odd  moments,  and  far  into  the  night, 
he  made  good  use  of  every  book  that  might  give  him 
a  wide  outlook  on  the  world.  Thus  he  became  con- 
versant with  the  great  English  classics ;  thus  he 
gained  a  thorough  knowledge  of  Latin  and  French, 
even  without  knowing  how  to  pronounce  the  words 
of  these  languages.  He  had  no  formal  schooling 
after  he  was  eleven  years  old,  but  he  read  so  widely 


His  Family 


13 


and  studied  so  assiduously  that  he  was  known  to  all 
as  a  man  of  culture  and  fine  mental  attainments. 

Mr.  Trumbull  saw  that  those  about  him  often 
needed  legal  advice.  Accordingly  he  read  law,  and 
for  years  drew  up  the  legal  papers  of  the  Stoning- 
ton  folk,  settled  their  disputes,  gave  counsel  as  it 
was  needed,  and  always  these  services  were  rendered 
without  pay.  He  was  a  member  of  the  state  House 
of  Representatives,  member  of  the  state  Senate,  and 
commissioner  of  the  School  Fund,  a  position  of  much 
responsibility  and  honor.  He  was  interested  with  his 
brother  John  F.  in  whaling  and  sealing,  in  those  days 
the  chief  occupation  of  the  Stonington  inhabitants. 

Gurdon  Trumbull  was  one  of  the  incorporators  and 
directors  of  the  first  railroad  in  Stonington,  incorpo- 
rated in  1832,  as  the  New  York  and  Stonington  Rail- 
road Company,  and,  indeed,  one  of  the  earliest  railroads 
in  this  country.  He  was  appointed  postmaster  by 
John  Quincy  Adams,  and  he  was  chosen  by  the 
United  States  Government  to  oversee  the  building  of 
the  breakwater  at  Stonington.  He  was  one  of  the  in- 
corporators of  the  Stonington  Savings  Bank,  chartered 
in  1850,  and  a  member  of  the  first  Board  of  Directors 
of  the  Ocean  Bank,  now  the  First  National,  in  1851. 

And  what  Gurdon  Trumbull  was  at  his  best  in  these 
varied  fields  of  service,  he  was  in  his  own  home, — 
clear-headed,  incisive,  honored,  trusted,  and  loved. 
That  home  must  have  been  an  incentive  to  the 
younger  generation.  It  explains  many  a  characteris- 
tic of  the  Trumbulls  of  our  own  day,  and  the  picture 
of  the  life  within  that  household  is  typical  of  the  best 
American  home  life  of  the  period. 


14  Henry  Clay  Trumbtdl 


There  were  generally  nine  at  the  table.  Mrs. 
Trumbull  had  the  rare  faculty  of  entering  heartily 
and  sympathetically  into  the  work  and  thought  of 
others,  while  the  father  was  ever  on  the  alert  to  in- 
terest and  stimulate  his  children  to  careful  thinking. 
He  was  wont  to  bring  about  a  discussion  by  seeming 
to  take  the  obviously  wrong  side.  Sweeping  generali- 
ties were  challenged,  opinions  uttered  were  not  allowed 
to  stand  without  stated  reasons,  and  then  the  reasons 
themselves  came  in  for  their  share  of  the  attack. 

For  example,  Mr.  Trumbull  would  strive  to  estab- 
lish the  saying  of  the  French  cynic  Rochefoucauld, 
that  no  misfortune  can  happen  to  another  that  does 
not  bring  some  kind  of  pleasure  to  oneself  Then  the 
sparks  would  fly,  until  the  gentle  mother  would  cry 
protestingly,  Father,  you  have  them  all  confused  ! " 
"That's  just  what  I  want!"  would  be  the  quick  and 
smiling  reply;  and  the  young  people,  with  sharpened 
wits,  would  have  had  another  lesson  of  the  sort  that 
helped  to  make  every  one  of  these  Trumbull  children, 
as  they  grew  to  maturity,  keen-eyed  for  truth,  and  by 
no  means  easy  to  overcome  in  an  argument.  Gurdon 
Trumbull  made  his  children  think;  his  wife  met  them 
in  their  studies  and  interests  at  the  very  point  where 
zest  may  fail  unless  a  sympathetic,  understanding 
helper  is  ready  to  give  encouragement.  Under  such 
training  the  natural  abilities  of  the  young  Trumbulls 
were  developed  to  a  high  degree. 

James  Hammond  Trumbull  very  early  showed  his 
aptitude  for  scholarly  pursuits.  In  1842-3,  when  he 
was  twenty-one  years  old,  he  assisted  the  Rev.  James 
H.  Linsley  in  preparing  lists  of  the  mammalia,  reptiles, 


His  Family 


15 


fishes,  and  shells  of  Connecticut.  In  1847-52,  and  in 
1858-61,  he  was  assistant  secretary  of  state,  and  secre- 
tary in  1861-64,  and  he  had  been  state  librarian  in 
1854.  In  1863,  he  was  chosen  president  of  the  Con- 
necticut Historical  Society,  having  been  its  corre- 
sponding secretary  for  the  preceding  fourteen  years. 
He  was  the  librarian  of  the  Watkinson  Free  Library 
of  Hartford  from  1863  to  1897.  In  1874-5,  he  was 
president  of  the  American  Philological  Association, 
and  was  for  years  a  member  of  numerous  other 
learned  bodies.  Perhaps  that  for  which  he  was 
most  noted  was  his  study  and  mastery  of  Indian 
languages  in  North  America.  He  was  known  as 
the  only  American  scholar  in  these  modern  days 
who  could  read  John  Eliot's  Indian  Bible.  His 
daughter,  Annie  Eliot,  is  widely  known  as  an  essay- 
ist, literary  critic,  and  writer  of  fiction. 

In  1897,  shortly  after  the  death  of  James  Ham- 
mond Trumbull,  his  friend  and  neighbor,  "  Mark 
Twain,"  said  of  him  in  The  Century  Magazine : 

**  He  was  probably  the  richest  man  in  America  in 
the  matter  of  knowledge, — knowledge  of  all  values, 
from  copper  up  to  government  bonds.  .  .  .  He  spent 
his  riches  in  a  princely  way  upon  any  that  needed 
and  applied.  .  .  . 

"Years  ago,  as  I  have  been  told,  a  v/idowed  de- 
scendant of  the  Audubon  family,  in  desperate  need, 
sold  a  perfect  copy  of  Audubon's  '  Birds  '  to  a  com- 
mercially-minded scholar  in  America  for  a  hundred 
dollars.  The  book  was  worth  a  thousand  in  the 
market.  The  scholar  complimented  himself  upon 
his  shrewd  stroke  of  business.    That  was  not  Ham- 


1 6  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


mond  Trumbull's  style.  After  the  war  a  lady  in  the 
far  south  wrote  him  that  among  the  wreckage  of  her 
better  days  she  had  a  book  which  some  one  had  told 
her  was  worth  a  hundred  dollars,  and  had  advised 
her  to  offer  it  to  him ;  she  added  that  she  was  very 
poor,  and  that  if  he  would  buy  it  at  that  price,  it 
would  be  a  great  favor  to  her.  It  was  Eliot's  Indian 
Bible.  Trumbull  answered  that  if  it  was  a  perfect 
copy  it  had  an  established  market  value,  like  a  gold 
coin,  and  was  worth  a  thousand  dollars ;  that  if  she 
would  send  it  to  him  he  would  examine  it,  and  if  it 
proved  to  be  perfect  he  would  sell  it  to  the  British 
Museum  and  forward  the  money  to  her.  It  did  prove 
to  be  perfect,  and  she  got  her  thousand  dollars  with- 
out delay,  and  intact." 

Mary  Trumbull  studied  in  Stonington  and  in  Brad- 
ford Academy,  Massachusetts.  She  married  William 
C.  Prime,  a  prominent  lawyer,  then  of  Williamsburg, 
New  York,  who  became  the  editor  and  one  of  the 
owners  of  the  New  York  Journal  of  Commerce,  presi- 
dent of  the  Associated  Press,  and  a  widely-known 
writer  on  art,  on  nature,  and  on  Oriental  travels. 
The  Primes  traveled  extensively,  and  through  Mrs. 
Prime's  interest  in  pottery  and  porcelain  they  made  a 
collection  of  representative  specimens  from  all  parts 
of  the  world.  By  their  generous  gift  this  became  the 
TrumbuU-Prime  Museum  at  Princeton,  Dr.  Prime's 
alma  mater. 

Charles  Edward  Trumbull  studied  in  Stonington, 
and  entered  Williams  College,  where  he  gained  dis- 
tinction as  an  orator.  On  the  evening  of  August  17, 
1852,  when  he  was  nineteen  years  old,  and  a  sopho- 


His  Family 


17 


more,  he  delivered  a  prize  oration  in  an  oratorical 
contest,  speaking  on  Henry  Clay,  who  had  just  died. 
At  the  close  of  the  contest,  the  orator  of  the  evening, 
Wendell  Phillips,  delivered  an  oration  before  the 
Adelphic  Union  Society,  in  which  he  took  occasion 
to  praise  Trumbull's  oration,  even  though  he  did 
not  agree  with  the  young  speaker's  attitude  to- 
wards Clay. 

To  gratify  his  parents'  wishes,  Charles  left  Williams 
and  went  to  Yale.  He  was  not  well.  His  parents 
desired  to  have  him  nearer  home.  At  Yale  he  won 
fresh  laurels  as  an  orator  throughout  his  course,  and 
delivered  a  commencement  oration  on  "The  Graves 
of  the  Regicides."  Horace  Bushnell,  who  heard 
the  address,  said  to  Henry  Trumbull  the  next  day, 
**  That  was  the  best  college  exercise  to  which  I  have 
ever  Hstened."  And  in  recent  years  Dr.  Trumbull 
repeatedly  heard  old  Yale  men  speak  of  that  oration, 
delivered  by  a  boy  who  died  when  he  was  in  his 
twenty-fourth  year.  Charles  had  purposed  to  study 
for  the  ministry,  but  his  health  suddenly  gave  way, 
and  he  died  in  Magnolia,  Florida,  on  March  17,  1856. 

Thomas  Swan  Trumbull  was  a  graduate  of  the 
Harvard  Law  School,  practised  law  in  New  York  in 
the  office  of  William  C.  Prime,  and  when  the  Civil  War 
came,  enlisted  in  the  first  three  years'  regiment  from 
Connecticut,  the  First  Connecticut  Regiment  of  Heavy 
Artillery.  He  was  commissioned  as  adjutant,  then  as 
major,  and  was  promoted  to  be  Lieutenant-Colonel. 
He  was  Chief  of  Artillery  on  the  staff  of  two  army 
corps  commanders,  and  at  one  time  had  charge  of  all 
the  artillery  before  Richmond  and  Petersburg.  He 


1 8  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


died  in  Washington  on  March  30,  1865,  while  on 
court-martial  duty,  worn  out  in  army  service. 

Annie  Trumbull  married  Edward  Slosson  of  New 
York  City,  a  prominent  lawyer.  As  an  author  of 
New  England  stories  she  has  disclosed  as  no  one  else 
has  the  dreamer  and  the  obscure  seer  in  that  fascina- 
ting country,  in  such  books  as  "  Fishin'  Jimmy," 
"  Seven  Dreamers,"  and  "  Aunt  Abby's  Neighbors." 
Among  scientists  Mrs.  Slosson  is  recognized  as  an 
authority  on  entomology.  Two  genera  of  insects 
have  been  named  for  her,  and  her  collection  of  moths 
and  butterflies  is  noted  for  its  numerous  rare  speci- 
mens. 

Gurdon  Trumbull,  the  youngest  of  the  children 
who  grew  to  maturity,  became  the  foremost  fish 
painter  in  America.  Then  he  interested  himself  in 
ornithology,  and  his  book,  Names  and  Portraits  of 
Birds  which  Interest  Gunners,"  is  an  authority  on  that 
subject.  He  died  only  twenty  days  after  his  brother 
Henry,  on  December  28,  1903. 

Each  child  of  Gurdon  and  Sarah  Trumbull  who  did 
not  die  in  childhood  or  youth  became  a  specialist  of 
note  in  one  field  or  another,  and  each  was  the  product 
of  a  home  life  and  a  neighborhood  environment  that 
were  uncommonly  stimulating  and  broadening.  In 
such  a  center  of  home  life,  in  such  close  touch  with 
local  and  larger  affairs,  the  younger  generation  was 
brought  into  formative  contact  with  a  wonderfully 
varied  life,  and  had  visions  of  a  wide  horizon  of  use- 
fulness. 


HEROES  OF  THE  STONINGTON  DAYS 


Impassable  barriers  ought  not  to  be  a  real 
hindrance  to  one's  progress  in  the  line  of  duty. 
If  a  man  has  anything  to  do  that  he  ought  to 
do,  he  should  do  it,  whether  he  can  do  it  or  not. 
The  fact  that  a  thing  cannot  be  done  that  must 
be  done,  is  only  an  added  reason  for  its  doing. 
— An  editorial  paragraph. 

Every  truest  follower  of  Christ  and  every  ex- 
ceptionally earnest  servant  of  God  to-day  has 
before  his  mind  some  human  ideal,  or  ideals, 
as  his  incentive  and  as  his  cheer  in  his  daily 
strivings  God-ward.  He  would  never  have 
known  the  beauty  and  the  nobleness  of  an  abso- 
lutely unselfish  affection,  of  a  simple  fidelity  to 
duty  in  all  things,  of  an  unswerving  consistency 
of  uprightness  in  conduct,  of  tender  considerate- 
ness  in  word  and  manner  toward  others,  of  heroic 
bearing  and  doing  in  emergencies,  if  he  had 
never  seen  one  of  those  traits  of  character  attrac- 
tively illustrated  in  fact  or  in  story. — Aspirations 
and  Infiuences. 


CHAPTER  II 


HEROES  OF  THE  STONINGTON  DAYS 

Along  the  New  England  coast,  by  reason  of  its 
age-long  buffetings  from  the  sea,  ragged  tumbles  of 
surf-worn  rock  sturdily  contest  the  shore-line  with 
the  ocean.  But  peaceful,  sandy  beaches  temper  the 
bravado  of  the  granite  line  of  battle ;  coves  and  quiet 
harbors  gather  and  release  the  full  and  silent  tides 
where  troublous  seas  can  never  enter. 

If  you  stand  far  out  on  the  Point  in  the  twilight  of 
a  November  day,  with  a  whirl  of  sleet  about  you,  and 
the  gray  sea  beyond  Watch  Hill  racing  into  Fisher's 
Island  Sound  with  the  spindrift  flying,  you  are  indeed 
in  Stonington.  But  the  Point  is  narrow  where  you 
stand.  On  the  right,  within  the  breakwater,  there  is 
harbor ;  behind  you  are  the  houses  of  the  village ;  to 
the  left  you  catch  a  glimpse  of  Watch  Hill  in  the  mist. 
The  dim  outline  of  Fisher's  Island  looms  across  the 
Sound,  and  you  are  alone  with  the  easterly  gale  on 
a  jutting,  brawny  arm  of  the  southern  New  England 
shore,  thrust  out  into  the  gray  of  the  inland  water, 
with  tumult  overhead,  and  under  the  lee  of  the  Point 
a  quiet  anchorage. 

But  Stonington  was  exceptional  among  New  Eng- 
land towns  in  its  contact  with  the  busy  world.  Its 
whaling  and  sealing  fleets  were  found  at  the  ends  of 

21 


22  He7iry  Clay  Trumbull 


the  earth.  It  was  the  terminus  and  junction  of  rail- 
road and  steamboat  traffic  between  eastern  New  Eng- 
land and  the  rest  of  the  country.  Consequently  life 
in  Stonington  was  by  no  means  narrow  or  dull.  His- 
torical interest  drew  many  prominent  visitors  to  the 
famous  little  seaport,  bringing  vividly  to  mind  notable 
events  and  achievements  in  the  persons  of  men  who 
had  actively  shared  in  them. 

When  Henry  was  about  three  years  old  he  was 
hfted  in  his  mother's  arms  to  see  President  Andrew 
Jackson  and  Vice-President  Martin  Van  Buren  pass- 
ing on  their  way  to  the  spot  on  which  the  Stonington 
men  were  stationed  when  they  repelled  the  British 
fleet  in  1814.  In  the  closing  year  of  his  life  Dr. 
Trumbull  wrote:  "  To  this  day  nothing  that  my 
eyes  have  ever  seen  in  the  way  of  natural  scenery 
equals  in  impressiveness  the  sight  of  a  great  man  and 
a  true  one.  He  is  sure  to  excite  my  interest.  I  have 
seen  the  Alps  and  the  Rocky  Mountains,  the  Yose- 
mite,  Mount  Sinai,  the  Mountains  of  Lebanon,  Niagara 
Falls,  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  oceans,  the  Mediterra- 
nean Sea,  and  the  Sea  of  Galilee,  but  these  were  as 
nothing  in  my  memory  compared  with  President 
Jackson,  my  first  hero,  and  the  other  heroes  who  have 
followed  him  in  my  human  gaze." 

Upon  the  occasion  of  President  John  Tyler's  visit 
to  Stonington,  Gurdon  Trumbull,  Henry's  father, 
was  a  member  of  the  reception  committee,  while  the 
boy's  uncle,  Dr.  George  E.  Palmer,  warden  of  the 
borough,  made  the  address  of  welcome.  The  Presi- 
dent was  shown  the  old  eighteen-pounders  that  had 
done  such  good  service,  and  the  arsenal,  so  dilapi- 


Heroes  of  Stonington 


23 


dated  that  it  offered  poor  protection  to  the  precious 
relics.  Dr.  Palmer  suggested  that  the  National 
Government  should  make  some  provision  for  caring 
for  the  old  guns.  Then  President  Tyler,  who  was 
known  as  Old  Veto,  said  in  the  hearing  of  the  wide- 
awake boy,  then  about  thirteen  years  old,  'Til  tell 
you  what  I'll  do.  If  you'll  get  Congress  to  vote  an 
appropriation  for  that  arsenal,  I'll  promise  not  to 
veto  it!" 

One  Sunday  afternoon  Henry  saw  Commodore 
Hull,  of  the  frigate  Constitution,  moving  about  the 
historic  places  in  the  village,  dressed  in  his  blue 
coat  and  trousers  and  buff  waistcoat  with  gilt  but- 
tons. He  saw  and  became  acquainted  with  Colonel 
John  Trumbull  of  Washington's  staff,  the  artist  son 
of  that  Governor  Jonathan  Trumbull  of  Connecticut 
to  whom  Washington  gave  the  name  of  "  Brother 
Jonathan."  This  man  carried  the  boy's  thought  back 
to  the  earliest  days  of  our  united  country.  For  John 
Trumbull  had  seen  the  battle  of  Bunker's  Hill,  and 
had  known  Benjamin  Franklin,  John  Hancock,  Roger 
Sherman,  General  Putnam,  and  many  another  man  of 
that  day  when  the  welding  and  the  defending  of  the 
colonies  were  still  absorbing  the  best  of  the  nation's 
best  men. 

At  the  railroad  station,  in  1848,  on  the  great  man's 
last  journey  to  Washington,  the  boy  saw  John  Quincy 
Adams.  It  may  seem  a  small  thing  in  these  teeming 
days  merely  to  see  a  man  of  note  and  power.  But 
this  was  never  so  at  any  time  with  Henry  Clay  Trum- 
bull. His  interest  was  in  men,  and  he  never  missed 
an  opportunity  to  look  into  the  face  of  a  strong  man. 


24 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


Others  would  do  this  out  of  sheer  curiosity,  he  as  a 
part  of  his  education.  How  his  eyes  would  flash  as 
he  described  General  Winfield  Scott,  who  seemed  to 
his  boyish,  fascinated  gaze  the  "  acme  of  human 
majesty  "  !  How  his  rapid  utterance  would  quicken 
as  he  described  the  pageant  in  New  York,  where  he 
went  from  Stonington  with  his  father  to  see  the 
victorious  General  returning  from  the  Mexican  war ! 
It  was  all  a  part  of  his  wonderfully  broad  education 
in  humankind,  and  throughout  his  life  the  individual 
was  his  chief  study. 

Henry  Trumbull  had  a  memory  which  even  in 
childhood  was  a  marvel  among  children's  memories. 
Until  he  had  passed  well  into  adolescence  he  hardly 
knew  what  it  was  to  forget  anything.  He  could  not  ap- 
preciate what  other  boys  meant  when  they  said  they 
had  "  forgotten."  The  books  he  read,  or  heard  read, 
the  men  he  met,  and  even  their  conversation,  he  re- 
membered with  almost  photographic  exactness.  His 
chief  recollections  clustered  about  the  men  he  had 
met,  and  the  events  in  which  these  men  had  a  part 
were  ever  vividly  before  him.  Always  his  conver- 
sation sparkled  with  reminiscences  of  those  days. 

When  he  was  only  eight  years  old  the  story  of 
Elihu  Burritt,  the  learned  blacksmith,  made  a  pro- 
found impression  upon  him.  Burritt  came  of  a  family 
of  Connecticut  farmers.  While  he  was  an  apprentice 
in  the  shop  of  a  blacksmith  he  studied  as  he  worked 
at  the  forge.  In  the  winter  evenings  he  read  Virgil 
and  Cicero.  Then  he  took  up  Greek.  Through 
the  interest  of  his  friend  William  Lincoln  and  the 
Honorable  Edward  Everett  the  public  became  inter- 


Heroes  of  Stonington 


25 


ested  in  him,  and,  greatly  to  his  surprise,  he  was 
sought  for  as  a  lecturer.  During  the  winter  of  1841, 
he  gave  his  lecture  "Application  and  Genius"  more 
than  sixty  times.   Of  that  lecture  Dr.  Trumbull  wrote  : 

'^'Fit,  non  nascitur,'  was  his  motto,  in  contradis- 
tinction to  the  well-known  Latin  proverb,  *  Pocta 
nascitur,  non  fit!  That  lecture  I  listened  to  en- 
tranced while  a  mere  boy  of  eleven  years,  in  the 
basement  lecture-room  of  the  Stonington  Congre- 
gational Church  on  a  week-day  evening.  Its  abiding 
impressions  are  in  my  mind  to-day.  It  was  a  start- 
ling thought  to  me,  young  as  I  was,  that  we  are 
to  be  counted  the  creatures  of  our  associates  and  our 
associations ;  that  it  is  not  so  much  what  is  in  us  at 
the  start  as  what  is  about  us  which  must  settle  the 
question  of  what  we  are  to  be.  That  lecture,  it  is 
true,  presented  but  a  half  truth,  yet  one  well  worth 
considering." 

It  was  twenty  years  after  the  boy  had  heard  Elihu 
Burritt  to  such  lasting  purpose  that  he  met  him  in  the 
learned  man's  home  in  New  Britain,  and  henceforward 
was  in  frequent  correspondence  and  close  intimacy 
with  him. 

When  Henry  was  only  ten  years  old,  Richard  H. 
Dana's  "Two  Years  Before  the  Mast"  appeared. 
J.  Hammond  Trumbull,  then  a  student  in  Yale,  while 
at  home  on  a  vacation  read  aloud  to  his  mother  this 
wonderful  story  of  the  sea.  Of  course  any  Stoning- 
ton boy  would  be  eager  to  hear  such  a  story  as  that, 
and  as  Henry  overheard  the  reading  he  became  fas- 
cinated by  the  book  and  its  author.  Many  years  later, 
when  Mr.  Dana  made  his  famous  argument  for  the 


26  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


continuance  of  the  Bible  in  the  pubHc  schools  of 
Maine,  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  was  himself  becom- 
ing a  factor  in  religious  education.  Then  again 
the  masterly  work  of  Mr.  Dana  made  its  impress 
upon  his  mind,  and  for  many  years  he  quoted 
from  that  argument  in  addresses  throughout  the 
country.  And,  as  in  the  case  of  so  many  other 
men  who  interested  him  as  a  boy,  Mr.  Trumbull 
came  to  know  Mr.  Dana  intimately  in  later  years. 

Peter  Parley,"  Mr.  Samuel  G.  Goodrich,  of  Con- 
necticut, was  another  hero  of  the  Stonington  days. 
Useful  knowledge  was  the  field  in  which  he  was  a 
pioneer  writer  for  children,  amid  public  criticism  and 
ridicule.  But  he  was  read  wherever  English  was 
read;  and  Daniel  Webster,  upon  returning  from  Eng- 
land, said  that  the  two  living  Americans  best  known 
in  England  were  Justice  Story  and  Peter  Parley.  In 
1827  he  began  his  writing  for  children,  and  in  thirty 
years  he  wrote  one  hundred  and  seventy  volumes. 
Of  Mr.  Goodrich,  Dr.  Trumbull  wrote:  "When  I  first 
began  to  read  I  had  the  help  and  stimulus  of  Peter 
Parley's  writings.  I  saw  his  picture  as  the  crippled 
old  Continental,  and  his  personality  was  fixed  in  my 
mind  accordingly.  For  years  he  was  thus  my  guide, 
philosopher,  and  friend.  What  a  disappointment  and 
shock  to  me  it  was  when  I  was  somewhat  older,  as 
I  was  presented  to  the  real  man  as  he  was,  in  my 
father's  sitting-room  !  He  had  just  returned  from 
Paris,  where  he  was  our  United  States  Consul  [from 

1-55]-  Instead  of  a  venerable  and  dilapidated 
old  Revolutionary  soldier,  he  was  a  slim  and  dap- 
per gentleman  of  middle  age  in  the  latest  cut  of 


Heroes  of  Stonington 


27 


Parisian  dress.  What  a  drop  from  the  ideal  to  the 
real ! " 

Among  Henry's  companions  was  a  boy  named  James 
McNeill  Whistler.  His  father,  Major  George  Wash- 
ington Whistler,  a  noted  engineer,  had  a  part  in  build- 
ing the  Stonington  and  Providence  Railroad.  With 
him  was  associated  Major  William  Gibbs  McNeill, 
whose  sister  Major  Whistler  married.  Dr.  George 
E.  Palmer,  an  uncle  of  Henry  Trumbull's,  married 
another  sister  of  Major  McNeill,  and  so  the  two  boys 
came  to  know  each  other.  Major  Whistler  was 
called  to  Russia  in  1842  to  superintend  the  building 
of  the  railroad  from  Petersburg  to  Moscow,  and 
the  younger  children  were  left  with  Mrs.  Palmer  dur- 
ing the  father's  absence.  "  At  that  time,"  writes  Dr. 
Trumbull  of  young  Whistler,  "he  exhibited  none  of 
the  excessive  vanity  that  has  since  excited  the  world's 
ridicule.  He  was  an  attractive  boy — bright,  cheerful, 
modest,  strange  as  this  may  seem.  I  had  practised 
somewhat  in  ordinary,  very  ordinary,  amateur  pencil 
drawing.  'Jamie,'  who  was  several  years  younger  than 
myself,  had  watched  me  at  my  work,  and  seemed  in- 
terested in  it.  He  was  then  nine  years  old,  and  I  was 
thirteen.  One  day  he  made  an  offhand  pencil  sketch, 
and  showed  it  to  me.  I  saw  at  once  that  that  was  the 
work  of  genius  and  I  praised  him  for  it  without  stint. 
At  this  he  seemed  delighted.  No  admirer  of  Whist- 
ler in  his  more  prominent  days  could  believe  that 
there  was  a  time  when  he  was  gratified  when  an 
ordinary  person  gave  praise  to  his  artistic  work.  But 
that  is  a  fact, — improbable  as  it  may  seem." 

The  "  old  corner  house "  in  which  Whistler  lived, 


28  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


and  in  which  Henry  Trumbull  worked  for  a  time  as  a 
dispensary  clerk,  was  built  by  Captain  Amos  Palmer, 
the  fifth  in  descent  from  Walter  Palmer,  one  of  the 
original  settlers  of  Stonington,  from  whom,  as  stated 
in  the  preceding  chapter.  General  Grant  and  Henry 
Trumbull's  mother  were  descended. 

In  this  wonderful  old  house  there  is  a  picture  of 
Whistler's  father  done  by  the  artist  himself  Miss 
Emma  Palmer,  daughter  of  Dr.  Palmer,  tells  of 
young  Whistler's  painstaking  study  of  the  art  in 
which  he  became  a  master.  For  the  young  artist,  as 
Miss  Palmer  vividly  remembers,  spent  many  days 
upon  the  effort  to  paint  perfectly  the  picture  of  a 
single  drop  of  water, — an  instance  of  his  ever  per- 
sistent and  conscientious  practise. 

Another  phase  of  life  was  brought  home  to  Henry 
Trumbull  with  memorable  distinctness  and  inspiring 
power.  Adoniram  Judson  stopped  at  the  Stonington 
railroad  station  for  a  few  hours  one  evening  on  his 
way  from  Boston  to  Philadelphia.  Henry,  who  was 
then  fourteen  years  old,  recognized  him  from  pictures 
he  had  seen  of  him.  Not  venturing  to  speak  to  him, 
however,  the  boy  hurried  to  summon  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Albert  G.  Palmer,  the  Baptist  pastor.  Henry  had 
read  the  story  of  Judson  in  a  village  library  book, 
and  he  was  intensely  excited  over  the  actual  presence 
of  such  a  man  in  Stonington.  Dr.  Palmer  lost  no 
time  in  reaching  the  station,  and  Henry  was  close  at 
hand. 

"  I  stood,  during  this  interview,"  wrote  Dr.  Trum- 
bull, "  at  a  little  distance  from  the  two,  and  watched 
the  face  of  the  good  and  great  man  while  he  talked 


Heroes  of  Stonington 


29 


with  his  fellow-disciple  of  his  Master  and  of  his  mis- 
sion. All  the  while  his  face  glowed  with  the  light  of 
his  theme.  The  sight  of  that  countenance  was  an  in- 
spiration and  a  blessing  to  me.  I  have  never  for- 
gotten it.  I  never  can  forget  it.  In  appearance  Dr. 
Judson  was  tall,  spare,  wiry,  of  firmly  compacted 
nerves.  In  his  face  were  the  signs  of  the  many 
battles  through  which  he  had  passed,  and  of  the 
spirit  in  which  he  had  been  a  victor  through  all ;  and 
under  all,  and  in  all,  there  was  a  spiritual  uplook 
showing  that  he  had  endured  as  seeing  Him  who  is 
invisible.  It  was  the  look  of  Michelangelo's  David, 
with  his  sling  across  his  shoulder,  ready  to  meet  the 
grim  giant  of  Gath,  and  doubting  not  that  he  should 
overcome  in  the  combat,  in  the  name  of  Him  for 
whom  he  stood  a  champion." 

Nor  was  it  alone  by  the  vision  he  had  of  this  noble 
missionary  that  Henry  Trumbull  received  missionary 
impulse  from  those  who  had  served  in  the  world  field. 
When  Henry  was  only  sixteen,  Albert  Bushnell,  the 
*'  Patriarch  of  West  African  Missions,"  visited  Ston- 
ington to  make  an  address  in  the  Congregational 
church.  Mr.  Bushnell  called  on  Gurdon  Trumbull, 
and  during  the  call  he  expressed  regret  that  he  had 
no  map  of  the  Gaboon  region  with  him  to  illustrate 
his  talk.  Mr.  Trumbull  suggested  that  he  thought 
his  son  Henrys  could  make  such  a  map,  and  Henry 
gladly  said  he  would  try. 

Mr.  Bushnell  produced  a  sketch  of  the  Gaboon 
Mission,  printed  in  the  Missionary  Herald,  and 
wished  that  enlarged.  Henry  set  to  work  on  several 
large  sheets  of  drawing  paper,  and  in  a  few  hours  had 


30  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


an  India  ink  sketch  map  measuring  about  three  and 
a  half  by  two  feet,  mounted  on  a  map  roller,  with  a 
cord  by  which  it  could  be  hung  in  the  church. 

"  However  it  might  have  been  about  others  in  the 
audience,"  wrote  Dr.  Trumbull,  "  there  was  one  boy 
interested  in  all  that  the  missionary  said  about  his 
West  African  field,  in  the  meeting  at  the  village 
church  in  my  Stonington  home,  with  the  help  of  that 
map." 

Gurdon  Trumbull,  Henry's  father,  in  view  of 
his  natural  aptitude  and  his  position  in  the  town, 
had  taken  a  prominent  part  in  politics.  He  was 
interested  not  merely  in  contests  for  local  candi- 
dates for  office,  but  he  threw  himself  energetically 
into  the  wider  battles  of  national  elections  and  national 
policies.  He  had  worked  and  voted  for  John  Quincy 
Adams,  and  greatly  admired  Henry  Clay.  There  had 
been  four  presidential  candidates  in  1824, — Jackson, 
Adams,  Crawford,  and  Clay.  When  it  became  neces- 
sary to  decide  the  election  in  the  House  of  Rep- 
resentatives, Clay  gave  his  influence  and  vote  for 
Adams.  When  Adams  was  elected,  and  had  ap- 
pointed Clay  his  Secretary  of  State,  Adams  and  Clay 
were  the  objects  of  severe  criticism  as  apparently  par- 
ties to  a  corrupt  bargain.  But  Gurdon  Trumbull  had 
confidence  in  Clay  and  in  Adams,  and  in  1830,  when 
his  sixth  child  was  born,  he  named  him  after  the  man 
for  whom  he  had  so  great  respect  and  admiration.  It 
was  characteristic  of  Mr.  Trumbull  that  he  then  said 
that  he  would  never  have  named  any  son  of  his  after 
a  popular  political  hero. 

Named,  however,  for  a  political  warrior  while  the 


Heroes  of  Stonington 


31 


smoke  of  a  fierce  political  battle  still  hung  over  the 
land,  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  was  to  find  in  that  fact  a 
stimulus  to  intense  political  interest  throughout  his  life. 
His  vision  and  his  vote  were  never  doubtful  in  any  issue. 
In  his  maturity  young  men  were  wont  to  go  to  him  for 
a  clarifying  of  their  ideas  on  coming  elections.  His 
judgment  of  men  and  measures  was  keen,  and  he  was 
never  confused  by  the  wild  attacks  of  an  opposing 
party  upon  the  candidates  of  another,  or  by  the  party 
picture  of  its  own  candidate  with  a  halo  poised  over  a 
head  which  he  thought  was  perhaps  more  deserving 
of  the  noose. 

This  political  acumen  had  its  beginnings  in  his 
naming.  It  was  fostered  by  Stonington.  In  the 
famous  campaign  of  Tippecanoe  and  Tyler,  too," 
when  Martin  Van  Buren  and  William  Henry  Harrison 
were  over  against  each  other,  and  when  in  that  **  Log 
Cabin  and  Hard  Cider  "  campaign  popular  enthusiasm 
was  intense,  the  boys  of  Stonington  did  not  sit  on  the 
fence.  They  marched  in  the  procession.  Amid  ex- 
citement rarely  seen  now,  they  paraded  the  village 
streets  singing  the  stirring  songs  of  that  campaign  of 
songs. 

When  Henry  Clay  and  James  K.  Polk  were  the 
presidential  candidates,  in  1844,  one  can  imagine 
young  Henry  Clay  Trumbull's  devotion  to  that  con- 
test. And,  as  if  designed  to  still  further  inspire  tliat 
fiery  young  Whig,  his  father's  house  fronted  on  the 
village  square,  and  the  halyards  of  the  village  flag- 
staff led  out  from  the  observatory  on  the  house.  It 
was  Henry's  special  duty  to  hoist  Old  Glory  to  the 
head  of  that  flag-staff  every  morning,  and  to  gather 


32  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


in  its  precious  folds  every  night.  That  of  itself  ought 
to  make  a  good  American  of  any  boy!  It  is  truest 
patriotism  that  in  our  own  day  has  set  the  flag  fly- 
ing from  the  public  schools  of  our  nation.  When 
a  schoolboy  is  permitted,  as  a  mark  of  honor,  to  raise 
that  flag,  he  is  lifting  his  own  ideals  of  his  duty  to  the 
United  States,  whether  he  himself  knows  that  blessed 
fact  or  not. 

Another  fact  impressed  itself  upon  the  boy's  mind 
in  that  house  close  to  the  flag.  His  father  had  put 
himself  into  the  campaign  for  Clay.  When  defeat 
came,  Gurdon  Trumbull  was  made  ill  by  sheer  disap- 
pointment. His  physical  collapse  was  so  complete 
that  his  family  feared  he  might  suffer  permanently 
serious  effects.  What  boy,  whose  father  could  be 
made  ill  by  such  a  disappointment  (he  was  after  no 
office  for  himself),  could  fail  to  be  impressed  with  the 
importance  and  burden  of  citizenship!  Young  as 
Henry  was,  it  was  not  surprising,  on  the  whole,  that 
he  should  be  led  into  places  of  early  responsibility  in 
political  affairs.  In  1848,  when  he  was  but  eighteen 
years  old,  it  was  his  duty  to  see  that  all  the  Whig 
voters  of  Stonington  were  at  the  polls  in  the  contest 
between  Taylor  and  Cass  for  the  Presidential  chair. 
Thus  he  began  an  active  pohtical  work  of  which  he 
was  to  do  yet  more  as  the  years  passed. 

There  was  no  one  among  all  the  Stonington  folk  of 
whom  Dr.  Trumbull  used  to  tell  with  quite  so  much 
gusto  as  of  Captain  Nat  Palmer.  He  was  a  master- 
mariner  of  world-wide  reputation.  When  a  mere  boy 
of  eighteen,  Captain  Nat,  in  his  forty-five  ton  sloop, 


Heroes  of  Stonington 


Hero,  joined  a  fleet  of  vessels  leaving  Stonington  for  a 
sealing  voyage  to  the  South  Shetlands.  They  were  near 
Deception  Island  in  the  season  of  1820- 182 1,  when, 
in  the  distance,  an  active  volcano  was  discovered. 
Captain  Palmer  went  in  the  Hero  to  explore  the 
new  territory.  Returning,  in  a  thick  fog,  he  fell  in 
with  a  Russian  fleet,  and  as  the  fog  began  to  clear, 
the  Russian  commander  sent  a  boat  to  the  Hero. 
The  Russians  were  on  an  exploring  expedition  around 
the  world.  When  the  Stonington  boy,  dressed  in 
sealskin  coat  and  boots,  with  his  ''sou'wester"  on 
his  head  stood  among  the  fully  uniformed  Russian 
officers  and  described  the  new  country,  the  astonish- 
ment of  the  Russian  commander  knew  no  bounds.  He 
expressed  his  disappointment  over  not  having  found 
the  new  land  for  his  sovereign.  Then,  grasping  the 
young  captain's  hand,  the  Russian  cried  : 

'*  What  shall  I  say  to  my  master !  What  will  he 
think  of  me  ?  But  be  that  as  it  may,  my  grief  is 
your  joy.  Wear  your  laurels  with  my  sincere  prayers 
for  your  welfare.  I  name  the  land  you  have  dis- 
covered in  honor  of  yourself,  noble  boy,  '  Palmer's 
Land.'  " 

So  to-day  on  the  map  of  the  world  is  written  the 
name  Palmer's  Land  across  that  continent  just  below 
the  South  Shetlands  in  the  far  Antarctic.  Captain 
Palmer  came  to  be  one  of  the  most  widely  known 
ship  commanders  on  the  ocean  highways  of  the 
world.  He  was  a  man  of  marked  character.  Huge 
of  .stature,  bold  and  resourceful,  his  face  and  form 
carried  the  marks  of  a  master  of  men.  He  was 
one  of  the  founders  of  the  New  York  Yacht  Club, 


34  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


and  between  voyages  he  amused  himself  in  his 
yacht. 

"  I  was  one  of  those,"  wrote  Dr.  Trumbull,  "  whom 
he  would  frequently  take  on  his  expeditions  along  the 
Long  Island  shore,  or  when  he  raced  with  the  yachts 
of  the  New  York  Yacht  Club.  He  started  out  one 
time  to  take  some  friends  of  his  to  Saybrook,  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Connecticut  River.  The  wind  died 
away  toward  evening  and,  as  we  came  to  the  mouth 
of  the  river,  the  tide  running  out  made  it  impossible 
to  hold  our  own.  We  were  being  driven  back  into 
the  Sound.  *  Captain  Nat '  told  us  two  boys  to  get 
out  the  rowboat  and  go  ahead  and  tow  the  yacht. 

"  It  was  not  an  easy  task  with  the  tide  and  the  river 
running  out  like  a  mill-race,  even  to  keep  the  boat 
ahead  of  the  yacht,  and  as  to  towing  the  yacht  in 
addition,  that  seemed  quite  out  of  the  question.  At 
the  same  time  *  Captain  Nat '  had  nothing  to  do  with 
impossibilities,  and  he  made  us  feel  that  we  must  not 
consider  them.  My  companion  fell  overboard  and 
struggled  for  his  life  in  the  rushing  torrent.  Yet, 
after  all,  we  accomplished  our  task,  and  toward  morn- 
ing we  reached  Saybrook.  We  two  boys  had  learned 
a  lesson  that  night  that  we  never  forgot.  I  felt  the 
power  that  was  commanding  us  more  forcefully  than 
I  ever  felt  its  like  before  or  since.  And  I  have  never 
lost  the  impression  of  his  ov^erpowering  effectiveness 
in  making  me  ready  to  do  what  I  had  to  do,  whether 
I  could  do  it  or  not." 


IN  SCHOOL  AND  OUT 


Intelligent,  purposeful  teaching  includes  the 
idea  of  two  persons,  both  of  them  active.  Nor 
is  it  enough  that  there  be  two  persons,  both  of 
them  active  ;  both  active  over  the  same  lesson. 
This  may  be  secured  by  hearing  a  recitation, 
and  commenting  on  it  ;  but  that  is  not,  neces- 
sarily, teaching.  The  scholar,  in  such  a  case, 
may  be  merely  exercising  his  memory,  reciting 
what  he  has  memorized  verbally  without  under- 
standing a  word  of  it  ;  he  learns  nothing  ;  he  is 
not  taught  anything  ;  he  is  not  caused  to  know 
a  single  fact  or  truth,  by  his  teacher's  hearing 
him  recite  ;  nor  does  he  learn  anything  by  his 
teacher's  wisest  comment,  if  he  pays  no  atten- 
tion to  that  comment,  or  if  he  is  unable  to 
understand  it  "Teaching,"  as  causing  an- 
other to  know,  includes  the  mutual  effort  of 
two  persons  to  the  same  end.  The  teacher 
must  endeavor  to  cause  the  pupil  to  learn  a 
particular  fact  or  truth  which  he  wants  him  to 
know  ;  the  learner  must  endeavor  to  learn  that 
particular  fact  or  truth.  Until  the  two  are  at 
this  common  work,  the  process  of  teaching  has 
not  begun  :  until  the  learner  has  learned,  the 
teacher  has  not  taught.  —  Teaching  and  Teachers. 


CHAPTER  III 


IN  SCHOOL  AND  OUT 

"  From  what  college  were  you  graduated  ?  "  was 
a  question  often  asked  of  Dr.  Trumbull,  and  no 
question  about  his  early  days  gave  him  more 
amusement. 

"  College,  college  ?  "  he  would  laughingly  answer. 
"  I  never  went  to  college.  My  health  would  not  let 
me.  I  never  had  much  schooling,  in  the  ordinary 
sense,  after  I  was  fourteen." 

*'  But  how  did  you  come  to  know  so  much.  Doc- 
tor ?  "  his  interrogator  would  wonderingly  ask. 

"  Oh,  I  don't  know  anything,"  would  be  the  instant 
reply.  "  I  just  have  an  idea  where  to  go  to  find  out 
things  I  want  to  know,  and  I  go." 

"  But  your  work  in  Oriental  research,  your  Bible 
study, — surely  you  do  know  more  than  most  of  us 
about  such  things  !  " 

"  That's  it,  that's  it !  "  the  Doctor  would  cry,  with 
his  brilliant  eyes  twinkling  mirthfully.  "  I  suppose  I 
do  know  more  than  some  men,  because  I  know  that 
I  don't  know  anything.  That's  the  biggest  part  of 
my  stock  of  knowledge.  I  know  I  don't  know, 
and  so  I  must  set  to  work  to  learn  what  I  want  to 
learn." 

This  was  almost  invariably  the  end  of  the  cross- 

37 


38  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


examination,  for  the  questioner  would  fall  to  thinking 
about  a  principle  of  scholarship  which  is  not  too  com- 
monly cited  by  scholars  in  the  open  court  of  conver- 
sation. 

Henry  Trumbull's  boyhood  schooling  was  an  ad- 
mixture of  home  culture,  neighborhood  knockabout 
observation,  and  severely  careful  training  in  private 
schools  under  those  whose  character  and  personality, 
quite  as  much  as  their  instruction,  gave  shape  and 
purpose  to  the  boy's  active  intellect. 

"It  was  about  1830,"  wrote  Dr.  Trumbull,  ''that 
infant  schools  were  introduced  into  this  country  from 
England.  Children  who  had  never  been  deemed  of 
school  age  went  to  these  schools.  One  of  them, 
taught  by  Miss  Grace  Stanton,  of  Wethersfield,  was 
held  in  Stonington.  I  attended  it  when  so  young 
that  after  my  lessons  I  would  be  laid  on  a  pillow,  on 
a  bench  in  the  schoolroom  to  sleep." 

The  old  Stonington  Academy,  which  Henry  began 
to  attend  on  August  I,  1839,  when  he  was  nine  years 
old,  was  taught  by  Daniel  S.  Rodman,  later  of  Wel- 
lesley,  and  by  Dr.  Nicholas  Chesebrough.  "  To  Dan- 
iel Rodman,"  wrote  Dr.  Trumbull,  "  I  owe  very  much 
in  his  power  of  making  a  subject  interesting  to  a  boy. 
He  first  made  Bible  stories  attractive  and  real  to  me 
from  the  superintendent's  desk  in  the  Sunday-school  " 
[of  the  Second  Congregational  Church].  A  school- 
mate of  Henry's  in  the  Academy,  Miss  Fanny  Chese- 
brough, writes  vividly  of  that  school : 

I  remember  still  the  Latin  recitations  in  the  old  Academy 
when  Daniel  Rodman  taught.  There  were  only  three  in  the 
advanced  class,  the  late  Hon.  Ephraim  Williams,  then  about 


In  School  and  Out 


39 


sixteen  years  of  age,  Edmund  D.  Stanton,  and  Henry  Clay 
Trumbull.     I  think  they  were  translating  Virgil. 

I  can  see  them  now,  sitting  in  the  flood  of  light  that  came 
in  behind  them  from  an  eastern  window.  Day  after  day  I  lis- 
tened, drinking  in  the  beauty  of  the  grand  poetry,  and  silently 
resolving  that  in  a  few  years  I,  too,  would  study  Latin,  and 
could  then  enjoy  the  delightful  story. 

And  what  a  school  Mr.  Rodman  taught  in  those  days  ! 
Never  do  I  remember  hearing  an  unpleasant  word.  In  a 
school  of  over  thirty  boys  and  girls  I  do  not  now  recollect  that 
one  was  ever  reproved.    If  so,  I  failed  to  hear  it. 

Among  Dr.  Trumbull's  papers  of  long  ago  was 
found  a  poster,  measuring  about  twelve  by  eighteen 
inches,  on  which  was  skilfully  drawn,  in  shaded  and 
elaborately  decorated  letters,  this  modest  announce- 
ment :  "  All  kinds  of  fancy  printing  performed  at  the 
desk  of  Henry  C.  Trumbull,  Stonington  Academy." 

Henry's  school-days  were  not  passed  entirely  in 
Stonington.  It  was  thought  best  by  his  parents  that 
he  should  have  the  experience  of  a  period  of  study 
away  from  home.  When  he  was  fourteen  years  old 
he  went  to  Williston  Seminary,  at  East  Hampton, 
Massachusetts,  for  this  purpose.  That  institution, 
founded  by  the  Hon.  Samuel  Williston,  had  been  in- 
corporated in  February,  1841,  and  in  December  the 
school  was  opened.  Its  need  and  place  were  at  once 
recognized.  In  its  early  days  there  was  no  arrancjj^e- 
ment  of  studies  by  terms,  and  the  students  were  not 
classified.  Luther  Wright,  its  principal  from  1841  to 
1849,  believed  it  desirable  to  have  his  pupils  study 
together  in  a  single  room,  under  his  direction.  There 
were  two  departments  in  the  school,  male  and  female, 
but  in  1864  the  latter  was  discontinued.  Williston  has 


40  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


made,  and  continues  to  make,  a  noble  record  in  the 
annals  of  education,  and,  naturally,  has  become  a  fully- 
graded  school.  In  the  forties,  at  its  very  beginning", 
the  purpose  of  the  founder  was  *'to  make  not  a  Col- 
lege nor  a  Professional  School,  but  a  Secondary  In- 
stitution of  a  far  higher  order  than  any  now  existing." 

Henry  boarded  in  the  family  of  Dr.  Atherton  Clark, 
whose  son,  William  S.  Clark,  was  his  schoolmate  in 
Williston.  In  later  years,  when  Trumbull  was  chap- 
lain of  the  Tenth  Connecticut,  and  William  S.  Clark 
was  colonel  of  the  Twenty-first  Massachusetts,  they 
were  together  at  Roanoke  Island,  and  New  Berne, 
North  Carolina.  After  the  war,  Clark  was  President 
of  the  Massachusetts  Agricultural  College  at  Amherst. 

Henry  had  a  restless  boy's  desire  to  go  away  from 
home,  into  new  surroundings,  but  he  had  not  reck- 
oned on  the  uprising  of  an  affection  for  home  which 
was  almost  overpowering  to  him.  His  health  was 
not  good.  He  was  frail  and  nervous,  and  accustomed 
to  the  most  tender  care  at  home.  Consequently,  he 
was  inclined  to  think  more  about  home  affairs  and 
the  possibiHty  of  having  his  part  in  them  again  than 
about  his  opportunities  in  school.  His  father  wrote 
long  and  painstaking  letters  to  the  affectionate  and 
sensitive  boy,  in  the  endeavor  to  set  his  mind  at  work 
upon  the  school  life  and  interests,  as  opportunities  for 
growth.  In  one  letter,  of  July  12,  1844,  he  put  the 
situation  clearly  in  his  carefully-framed  and  delib- 
erate phrases : 

I  regret  that  you  appear  to  suffer  under  the  species  of  dis- 
content called  home-sickness.  I  regret  it  because  it  makes  you 
unhappy,  and  disqualifies  you  from  profiting  by  the  advan-- 


In  School  and  Out  41 


tages  of  your  present  position.  .  .  .  We  hardly  appreciate 
the  common  blessings  of  life  until  we  suffer  their  depriva- 
tion, and  we  are  apt  to  make  more  allowances  for  the 
defects  in  the  disposition  or  deportment  of  our  nearest 
friends  when  they  are  separated  from  us,  while  we  are  more 
subject  to  self-reproach  in  a  retrospect  of  our  deficiencies  in 
duty  and  affection  when  those  to  whom  they  are  due  are  far 
away.  ...  If  I  were  to  offer  advice  to  you,  believing  that  it 
would  be  implicitly  followed,  I  should  urge  you  to  make  a  good 
use  of  the  present  time,  to  lose  no  opportunity  of  getting  good 
and  doing  good.  ...  I  would  have  you  lay  a  foundation 
strong  and  deep  for  your  future  happiness,  and  to  sacrifice 

present  ease  and  gratification  in  prosecuting  this  work  

I  would  have  you  ask  yourself,  before  action,  whether  what 
you  propose  to  do  is  right  in  itself,  whether  it  will  afford 
you  satisfaction  in  the  retrospect,  whether  it  is  consistent  with 
that  law  of  benevolence  to  which  I  have  referred.  If  you  can 
answer  in  the  affirmative,  fear  not  to  go  forward,  believing  that 
your  decision  will  be  approved  by  your  parents,  by  your  own 
conscience  and  by  your  Father  above.  ...  I  would  seriously 
caution  you  against  indulging  discontent  and  impatience. 
They  will  poison  your  peace  if  not  subdued.  .  .  .  Content- 
ment and  complacency  depend  more  upon  ourselves  than  upon 
circumstances,  and  if  you  would  enjoy  your  present  position  or 
any  other  in  which  you  may  hereafter  find  yourself,  you  must 
strive  to  make  the  best  of  it  and  resist  that  element  in  our 
composition  which  makes  us 

"Fond  of  novelty,  and  studious  of  change.** 

Thus,  although  away  from  home,  Henry  was  not 
away  from  the  influence  of  home  philosophy.  He 
was  in  constant  ill-health,  and  before  the  school  year 
was  over  he  was  at  home,  among  his  associates  in  the 
village.  But  the  influences  of  Williston  lingered  with 
him.  There  was  henceforth  an  outer  world  for  him 
in  his  own  experiences.  In  the  school,  upon  one 
occasion,  he  heard  the  great  John  Todd,  that  pioneer 


42  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


of  educators,  whose  principles  and  spirit  laid  hold 
upon  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  for  future  outworking  in 
his  own  ideals  of  the  teaching  art.  It  was  while  he 
was  at  Williston,  a  fellow-student  with  a  son  and  a 
daughter  of  William  Richards,  a  martyred  mission- 
ary to  the  Sandwich  Islands,  that  the  boy  visited  the 
grave  of  David  Brainerd  at  Northampton.  Quick- 
ened by  the  story  of  David  Brainerd,  Henry  Martyn 
had  carried  the  gospel  to  India.  And  for  young 
Trumbull  deep,  abiding  purposes  found  their  begin- 
nings in  that  boyhood  pilgrimage  to  David  Brainerd's 
last  resting-place. 

After  he  left  Williston,  Henry  had  occasional  terms 
at  school,  but  with  no  regularity.  He  was  not  par- 
ticularly interested  in  study,  nor  was  he  very  profi- 
cient in  any  one  branch.  One  afternoon,  however,  as 
he  was  studying  Virgil  in  the  village  school-room, 
under  Mr.  L.  L.  Weld  as  the  teacher,  he  suddenly 
became  conscious  of  a  new  interest  in  his  subject  of 
study. 

As  I  was  looking  out  the  words  in  my  lexicon," 
he  wrote,  "  I  became  interested  in  the  portion  of  Virgil 
which  was  my  lesson.  Without  a  thought  of  the 
class  recitation  before  me,  I  felt  an  interest  in  the 
story  I  was  translating.  It  was  my  first  awakening 
to  an  interest  in  study  as  study.  It  was  late  in  school 
life  for  such  a  beginning.  It  was  not  many  weeks 
before  I  left  school  permanently.  But  from  that  day 
to  the  present,  study,  research,  has  never  lost  its 
interest  to  me." 

Twice  during  his  Stonington  days,  once  before  he 
went  to  Williston,  and  once  after  he  returned,  Henry 


In  School  and  Out  43 


was  for  several  months  in  the  dispensary  or  apothe- 
cary's store  and  office  of  his  uncle,  Dr.  George  E. 
Palmer.  As  a  country  physician,  Dr.  Palmer  prepared 
his  own  remedies,  and,  in  addition  to  this,  he  was  ac- 
customed to  fit  out  medicine  chests  for  the  Stoning- 
ton  whale  ships.  For  several  months  Henry  was  the 
assistant  of  his  family  physician,  Dr.  William  Hyde, 
Jr.,  in  preparing  medicine  chests  for  the  New  York 
and  New  Orleans  steamers ;  and  he  was  often  called 
upon  by  these  two  physicians  to  assist  in  surgical 
operations, — all  of  which  was  of  untold  service  to  him 
in  his  army  experiences  in  camp  and  field  and  prison. 

When  about  nineteen  Henry  was  the  only  clerk  of 
Francis  Amy,  cashier  of  the  Stonington  Bank,  and 
treasurer  of  the  Stonington  and  Providence  Railroad, 
of  which  Cornelius  Vanderbilt  was  the  president, — 
Vanderbilt's  first  office  of  the  kind.  Young  Trumbull 
was  kept  busy.  When  some  one  asked  Mr.  Amy 
what  were  his  bank  hours,  that  hard-working  man 
replied :  "  We  open  when  we've  a  mind  to,  and  we 
shut  up  when  we  get  through."  Then,  when  the 
bank  "  shut  up  "  for  the  day,  the  railroad  work  was 
on  hand  for  the  evening.  Of  this  Dr.  Trumbull 
wrote : 

"  My  office  experience  in  the  evenings  was  of  value 
as  training  me  to  devote  myself  to  my  work,  without 
being  disturbed  by  noises  about  me.  The  treasurer's 
office,  which  was  also  the  superintendent's,  was  on 
the  ground  floor  of  the  railroad  station,  near  the  far 
end  of  the  steamboat  dock.  The  office  door  was 
always  open,  and  persons  were  coming  in  and  going 
out,  to  ask  questions  or  to  make  reports.    Fifty  feet 


44  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


from  my  desk  a  steamboat  was  blowing  steam  through 
its  pipes,  while  making  ready  for  its  next  trip.  Freight 
trucks  were  running  by  the  door,  unloading  the  cars 
and  loading  the  steamer.  Yet  I  must  settle  the  day's 
accounts,  with  conductors  and  purser,  in  all  this  hub- 
bub. After  that  training  I  could  sit  on  a  curbstone 
in  a  city  street  and  write  an  editorial  as  easily  as  in 
an  inner  study  of  a  clergyman's  house." 

Two  and  a  half  miles  east  of  Stonington  in  Henry 
Trumbull's  boyhood  a  district  schoolhouse  served  the 
Wequetequock  neighborhood  in  double  capacity.  For 
in  that  little  building  Daniel  S.  Rodman,  Henry's  be- 
loved schoolmaster,  more  to  him  as  a  boyhood  teacher 
than  any  other  man,  had  gathered  in  July,  1845,  a 
Sunday-school  of  about  two  score  members. 

The  Trumbulls  attended  the  Second  Congregational 
Church,  of  which  the  Rev.  William  Clift  was  then  the 
pastor.  Henry  had  never  seriously  faced  the  question 
of  his  acceptance  of  the  Saviour,  though  he  was  a 
pupil  in  the  Sunday-school ;  but  his  generous  and 
active  spirit  led  him  most  naturally  into  whatever 
work  appeared  to  need  his  help.  When  the  Wequete- 
quock school  needed  teachers,  he  became  a  teacher 
there.  One  of  the  boys  in  his  class,  now  Dr.  George 
D.  Stanton  of  Stonington,  has  vivid  recollections  of 
young  Trumbull,  who,  says  Dr.  Stanton,  was  the 
most  fluent  talker  he  had  ever  known.  His  teaching 
was  full  of  illustrations,  very  practical,  and  sure  to 
have  attention.  He  was  superintendent  of  the  school 
in  the  summer  of  1855,  during  a  visit  to  Stonington, 
and  in  that  capacity  he  gave  evidence  of  his  devotion 
to  individual  work  with  individuals.    For  it  is  related 


In  School  and  Out  45 


by  Miss  Fanny  Chesebrough,  who  has  suppHed  many 
historical  facts  about  the  school,  that  upon  a  closing 
Sabbath  of  the  school  (Sunday-schools  in  those  days 
sometimes  closed  in  winter)  she  saw  Mr.  Trumbull  in 
long  and  earnest  conversation  with  a  young  and  sen- 
sitive girl,  a  member  of  the  Bible  class  which  he 
taught.  Miss  Chesebrough  met  Mr.  Trumbull  some 
weeks  later  in  the  Hartford  railroad  station,  and  to- 
gether they  discussed  the  case  of  this  troubled  soui. 
in  whose  welfare  both  were  interested. 

In  1850,  Mr.  Trumbull  was  teaching  a  class  of  boys 
in  the  Second  Congregational  Sunday-school  in  Ston- 
ington.^  This  was  the  lineal  descendant  of  the  first 
Sunday-school  in  eastern  Connecticut,  gathered  by 
Mrs.  Phoebe  Smith  in  her  Stonington  home  in  18 15. 
And  of  this  school  the  Manual  of  the  Second  Church 
says  :  "  To  this  church  and  community  it  has  been  a 
constant  blessing,  while  it  has  had  the  honor  of  giv- 
ing to  this  generation  one  of  its  most  eminent  Sun- 
day-school workers  in  the  person  of  the  Rev.  Henry 
Clay  Trumbull." 

Even  thus  early  in  his  Sunday-school  training  Mr. 
Trumbull  began  to  acquire  his  sympathetic  under- 
standing of  the  pupil's  way  of  looking  at  things.  One 
of  his  boys,  at  the  close  of  a  lesson,  asked  the  young 
teacher  to  explain  a  picture  in  a  library  book.  Two 
little  boys  who  had  been  sailing  on  Sunday  were  about 
to  be  drowned  by  the  capsizing  of  their  boat. 

"  Was  they  drownded  ?  "  asked  the  boy  with  wide- 
eyed  interest. 

"  Yes,"  answered  Mr.  Trumbull  ;  "  and  thus,  my 
boy,  you  may  see  the  fruits  of  disobedience  and  Sab- 


46  Henry  Clay  TrMmbull 


bath  breaking.  Had  those  boys  obeyed  their  parents, 
and  gone  to  Sabbath-school,  they  might  have  been 
yet  alive  and  happy." 

The  young  hopeful,  himself  a  longshore  lad,  gazed 
in  silence  for  a  moment  at  the  perilous  position  of  the 
boat  in  the  picture,  and  then  indignantly  cried  out : 
"  Why  don't  the  plaguey  fool  ease  off  his  main 
sheet ! " 

After  Stonington,  Mr.  Trumbull  was  ready  for  any- 
thing, particularly  the  unexpected. 


EARLY  LITERARY  TENDENCIES 


The  truest  preparation  for  high  intellectual 
pursuits  is  in  the  disciplining  of  the  intellectual 
faculties  by  an  enforced  constraint  within  the 
limits  of  special  studies,  against  which  the  pri- 
mary instincts  and  the  passing  fancies  of  the  stu- 
dent' s  mind  incline  to  rebel.  Not  until  a  student 
has  learned  how  to  give  his  whole  being  to  ap- 
plication or  to  research  contrary  to  his  natural 
inclination,  is  a  student  capable  of  application 
or  of  research  to  the  best  advantage  in  the  line 
of  his  inclination.  And  he  who  studies  only 
what  he  likes  to  study,  and  only  when  he  enjoys 
studying,  can  never  make  such  progress  in  the 
direction  of  even  such  study,  as  can  his  fellow, 
of  equal  native  capacity  with  himself,  who  turns, 
by  his  own  will,  or  who  is  turned  by  a  sense  of 
duty  or  of  enforcing  circumstances,  in  that  direc- 
tion after  he  has  gained  the  power  of  working 
effectively  against  his  impulses  and  preferences, 
and  who,  by  holding  all  his  intellectual  powers 
in  control,  has  gained  the  control  of  all  his  in- 
tellectual powers. — Practical  Paradoxes. 


CHAPTER  IV 


EARLY  LITERARY  TENDENXIES 

To  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  the  gift  of  expression  was 
vouchsafed  in  many  forms.  His  brilliant  eyes  looked 
straight  through  you  when  intent  and  piercing;  they 
were  irresistible  in  their  merry  twinkle  when  the 
nimble  wit  behind  them  flashed  out  from  the  windows 
through  which  it  was  not  hard  to  discern  the  soul 
within.  When  opened  wide  in  surprise  or  astonish- 
ment, or  in  the  heat  of  argument,  they  shone  with 
an  almost  hypnotic  fascination.  Indeed,  the  practise 
of  hypnotism  was  one  of  young  Trumbull's  delights 
with  the  village  boys  as  his  wondering  subjects. 
Even  as  a  boy  his  thought  found  vivid  expression 
through  those  eyes  of  his, — keen  or  lambent,  now 
merry,  now  dark  with  anger;  through  swiftly  ges- 
ticulating, sinewy,  strong  hands ;  and  by  way  of 
mobile  lips  that  seemed  no  barrier  to  the  rapid 
utterance  of  his  crowding  thoughts. 

Of  course  such  a  nature  would  express  itself  It 
could  not  be  self-contained.  The  boyish  pranks,  the 
love  of  companionship,  adventure,  social  exhilaration; 
the  ready  flow  of  anecdote,  and  the  trip-hammer 
strokes  of  sudden  epigram  which  characterized  his 
conversation  in  adolescence  and  in  all  his  later  life, 
were  the  abounding  evidences  of  an  overflowing  soul. 

49 


50 


Henry  Clay  Tf^umbull 


Dr.  Trumbull  used  to  tell,  with  a  twinkle  in  his 
keen  blue  eyes,  of  the  naming  of  the  Stonington 
streets,  when,  nearly  fifty  years  ago,  they  got  the 
names  that  have  clung  to  them.  Their  naming  was 
one  of  the  pranks  of  the  boys,  who,  even  in  fun,  were 
working  with  no  httle  imagination,  and  to  a  good 
purpose.  The  boys  had  a  reason  for  each  name 
they  gave.  Broad  street  was  wider  than  the  others ; 
Pearl  street  was  so  called  because  of  a  girls'  school 
on  that  street;  Grand  was  the  finest  street  in  those 
days;  Union  is  a  short  street  connecting  Main  and 
Water  streets.  "  Harmony,"  wrote  Dr.  Trumbull, 
in  a  letter  to  Miss  Grace  D.  Wheeler,  author  of 
Old  Homes  in  Stonington,"  "  had  reference  to  a 
family  that  lived  on  it.  The  father,  when  excited  by 
liquor,  was  very  ill-natured,  and  my  uncle,  John  F. 
Trumbull,  told  often  of  seeing  the  old  man  in  a  vil- 
lage store  until  late  in  the  evening,  when  he  would 
say,  *Well,  it  is  time  I  returned  to  my  cottage  of  peace 
and  contentment'  An  hour  later  you  could  go  by 
that  house  and  hear  the  wife  screaming,  while  the 
husband  dragged  her  around  by  the  hair  of  the  head; 
hence  the  name." 

One  naturally  finds  evidences  of  Henry's  desire 
for  word-expression  in  the  local  prints  and  speech- 
making  of  the  day.  In  such  productions  one  would 
not  look  for  the  restrained  utterances  of  maturity 
and  cultivation,  but  rather  for  the  efflorescence  of 
a  garden  run  wild  in  its  riot  of  new  life.  His 
first  speech  was  delivered  on  behalf  of  a  volunteer 
fire  company  in  Stonington,  in  welcoming  a  visit- 
ing fire  company  from  Providence.    Henry  was  the 


Early  Literary  Tendencies  51 


secretary  of  the  Stonington  organization,  the  Un- 
dine," a  name  that  had  been  suggested  by  him,  and 
adopted  by  the  company,  against  the  objection  of 
members  who  thought  Undine  "  was  too  decidedly 
a  heathen  name,  and  who  suggested  Neptune  "  as  a 
substitute.  In  another  saving  work  which  was  then 
coming  into  increased  prominence  and  recognition, 
young  Trumbull  was  found  working  and  speaking 
with  all  the  energy  and  zeal  that  always  mastered  him 
whenever  he  united  himself  with  any  good  cause. 
For  he  had  aligned  himself  with  the  temperance 
work  of  the  day,  and  there  is,  in  his  fine  and  pa- 
tient and  beautifully  clear  handwriting,  a  record  of 
one  of  his  temperance  addresses,  delivered  before 
the  Mechanics'  and  Workingmen's  Association  of 
his  native  town  on  February  4,  1850.  His  begin- 
ning is  characteristic  : 

"Temperance!  Surely  'twould  seem  useless  to 
employ  the  time  of  this  meeting  in  discoursing  upon 
this  well-drilled  topic.  Truly  it  is  a  singular  subject 
on  which  to  speak  in  this  enlightened  age.  Striving 
to  convince  an  intelligent  audience  that  total  absti- 
nence from  all  intoxicating  beverages  is  preferable  to 
delirium  tremens  and  the  drunkard's  death,  is  a  strange 
employment.  What  would  be  thought  of  one  who 
should  give  notice  of  a  lecture  on  the  advantages  of 
air  in  sustaining  life  and  health,  or  of  the  benefits  of 
sun  and  rain  to  vegetation  ?  " 

But  he  goes  on  to  recognize  the  need  of  such  ad- 
dresses, and  he  proceeds  to  picture  the  contrast 
between  the  two  extremes  of  temperance  and  intem- 
perance devoteeism. 


52  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


"  An  ultra  fanatical  temperance  man  devotes  his 
whole  energies  to  the  cause  to  which  he  is  pledged. 
He  uses  every  means  in  his  power  to  secure  the  refor- 
mation of  inebriates.  He  endeavors  to  restore  the 
degraded  drunkard  to  his  proper  position  among  his 
fellow  men.  He  strives  to  arrest  the  descent  of  those 
rapidly  going  down  to  a  hopeless  grave.  He  warns 
the  moderate  drinker  of  his  imminent  danger  and 
urges  him  to  beware  lest  he  follow  in  the  foot- 
steps of  thousands  who  have  become  intemperate 
by  degrees." 

And  after  a  few  other  outline  hints  he  sketches  the 
contrasting  picture. 

*'But,  I  ask,  is  there  no  ultraism  on  the  other  side? 
Behold  men,  from  respectable  positions  in  society,  by 
intemperance  and  that  alone,  brought  to  a  level 
with  the  brute  .  .  .  who  will  envy  the  last  hours  of 
the  inebriate?  Watch  him  as  his  end  draws  nigh! 
.  .  .  Ragged,  filthy,  loathsome  object, — now  striving 
to  hide  his  head  in  the  dust  to  escape  from  the  dread 
demons  of  his  own  creation ;  then  springing  wildly  to 
his  feet,  loudly  calling  with  horrid  imprecations  for 
aid  in  dispelling  the  fearful  phantoms.  At  one 
moment  giving  battle  to  his  imaginary  opponents ;  the 
next,  sinking  trembling  and  exhausted  to  the  earth. 
Again,  wildly  tossing  his  arms  to  and  fro,  shrieking 
vainly  for  aid  in  the  notes  of  despair,  until  worn  out 
with  his  fruitless  endeavors  to  rid  himself  of  torment, 
with  an  oath  upon  his  lips,  his  soul  passes  from  its 
mortal  tenement,  whither,  we  may  not  follow!" 

There  is  a  singular  disparity  between  the  impas- 
sioned words  and  their  exquisitely  clear  and  deliberate 


Early  Literary  Tende7icies  53 


delineation  in  Mr.  Trumbull's  handwriting.  And  while 
his  rhetoric  became  more  compact,  and  slipped  its 
burden  of  superlatives,  as  time  and  culture  and  a  ma- 
turer  intensity  did  their  work  in  him,  it  needs  no  look 
between  the  lines  to  see  the  flashing  eyes,  the  lithe 
body,  the  freely  gesticulating,  nervous  hands,  and  the 
magnetic  personality  of  the  young  prophet  of  reform 
as  he  poured  out  his  abundant  argument. 

But  speech-making  was  by  no  means  the  only  sig- 
nificant foreshadowing  of  Henry  Trumbull's  life-work. 
He  was  the  leader  among  a  little  group  of  bright- 
minded  young  people  who  kept  the  borough  from 
rust.  Whimsical  w^it,  from  a  perennial  spring,  ban- 
tering interludes  in  even  the  most  casual  conversa- 
tions, the  saving  grace  of  seeing  the  funny  side,  and 
the  determination  to  use  whatever  gifts  one  may  have, 
,are  never  lacking  in  the  normal  New  England  charac- 
ter. These  Stonington  young  people  were  true  to 
the  blood.  It  was  not  enough  that  they  should  have 
their  parties,  their  speech-making  and  lecture  courses, 
their  church  socials  and  fairs,  and  the  fanfare  of  politi- 
cal campaign  excitement.  They  must  use  their  latent 
talents.    They  must  edit  a  paper. 

On  October  29,  1849,  the  nineteen-year-old  editor, 
Henry  Trumbull,  and  three  other  aspiring  writers, 
brought  out  the  first  number  of  a  four  column,  four- 
paged  literary  periodical,  with  the  modest  title  of 
"  Lux  Mundi,"  giving  as  their  motto  "  The  angle  of 
Reflection  is  equal  the  angle  of  Incidents."  That 
issue  contained  a  prospectus,  two  poems  occupying 
together  more  than  three  full  columns,  two  long  edi- 
torials, a  story,  "  I'd  be  a  Fair>%"  and  miscellaneous 


54  Heriry  Clay  Trumbull 


paragraphs,  with  various  ravings  by  the  Maniac,  who 
had  been  "  secured  "  by  the  editor  to  furnish  shrewd 
remarks  and  reflections. 

*'  Our  paper  will  be  called,"  says  the  prospectus, 
"  LUX  MUNDI,  and  will  be  issued  on  Monday,  as 
often  as  the  disposition  of  our  readers  may  demand, 
or  our  own  circumstances  permit.  .  .  .  Will  you  not 
then  lend  us  your  aid.  We  come  not  as  craven  sup- 
pliants for  money  or  patronage — but  to  sustain  the 
position  we  wish  it  will  be  necessary  that  you  add  a 
warm  and  energetic  support.  Without  this  to  grease 
the  machinery  of  existence  what  were  life  to  us.  Like 
the  thievish  boy  suspended  by  his  trousers  from  the 
pike  of  a  garden  fence,  we  should  present  the  splendid 
but  evanescent  spectacle  of  genius  struggling  against 
insurmountable  obstacles." 

"  Too  long,"  wrote  Mr.  Trumbull  in  his  first  edi- 
torial, "  have  the  bright  literary  flowers  of  Stonington 
wasted 

'  Their  fragrance  on  the  desert  air. ' 

Too  long  has  modest  worth  and  retiring  genius  been 
concealed  from  the  outer  world,  and  the  many  brilliant 
effusions  of  our  Stonington  literati  h^^n  left  unnoticed 
and  unappraised  because  unseen." 

This  sad  state  of  public  ignorance  was  not  to  remain 
unchanged.  Indeed,  so  brilliantly  did  the  hght  shine 
that  it  apparently  awakened  the  green-eyed  demon  of 
envy  in  the  breasts  of  other  Stonington  persons  of 
talent,  and  on  November  lO  appeared  an  opposition 
paper,  "  The  Extinguisher,"  with  its  apt  motto,  "  Out, 
out,  brief  candle  !  " 


Early  Literary  Tendencies  55 


The  Extinguisher  was  crushingly  critical  of  Lux 
Mundi  and  its  several  makers.  They  were  flayed 
one  by  one.  Their  productions  were  torn  to  shreds. 
The  rival  sheets  were  the  talk  of  the  village.  Then 
came,  on  November  27,  an  Extinguisher  **  extra,"  in 
which  these  enlightening  words  appeared : 

"  A  few  weeks  since,  four  young  persons,  viz.,  Miss 
M.  H.  T.  [Mary  H.  Trumbull],  Miss  B.  S.  W.  [Bessie 
S.  Williams],  Mr.  E.  D.  S.  [Edmund  D.  Stanton],  and 
Mr.  H.  C.  T.,  prompted  by  no  sinister  motives,  with 
no  desire  to  '  lord  *  it  over  others,  thinking  them- 
selves no  better  or  more  intelligent  than  those  around 
them,  but  solely  for  their  own  amusement,  issued  the 
first  number  of  '  Lux  Mundi.'  We  hoped  that  our 
efforts  would  at  least  amuse  the  readers ;  we  little 
thought  that  'twould  displease  any ;  but  no  sooner 
was  the  paper  seen  than  cavillers  were  found  in  abun- 
dance. Our  paper  was  not  only  denounced  as  a  'soft, 
mooney  affair,'  but  the  editors  were  accused  of  arro- 
gance and  assumption  in  thus  daring  to  start  a  literary 
paper.  It  was  soon  proposed  to  start  an  opposition 
paper,  to  be  called  '  The  Illuminator,'  with  the  sole 
object  of  '  running  down '  '  Lux  Mundi.'  But  our 
paper  was  not  to  be  *  extinguished  '  thus  ;  on  the  very 
day  that  we  learned  their  intentions  we  ordered  hand- 
bills announcing  the  forthcoming  of  *  The  Extin- 
guisher,' We  then  appointed  a  young  gentleman 
(whose  modesty  prevents  his  name  being  given  to  the 
public)  sole  editor,  with  full  editorial  powers  and 
privileges,  while  we  agreed  to  assist  him  by  our  con- 
tributions ;  thus  it  will  be  seen  that  (as  we  have  often 
said)  the  editors  of  the  two  papers  were  not  the  same, 


56  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


nor,  indeed,  was  either  of  the  editors  of*  Lux  Mundi ' 
an  editor  of  '  The  Extinguisher.' 

"  We  were  thankful  to  a  few,  who,  in  the  exuberance 
of  their  love  for  us,  denounced  '  The  Extinguisher'  as 
a  low  filthy  sheet,  unworthy  of  notice,  without  a  single 
redeeming  point,  and  evidently  written  by  ignorami. 
Persons  in  the  village  near  us  remarked,  'That's  just 
like  Stonington  Pint, — the  folks  there  are  always  fight- 
ing ;  no  one  can  ever  start  anything  there,  not  even  a 
literary  paper,  without  being  opposed  and  ridiculed.' 
One  lady  remarked  that  *  H.  C.  T.  did  look  crest- 
fallen when  he  came  into  church  on  the  morning  after 
The  Extinguisher  "  came  out !  '  Others  asked  if 
we  would  not  admit  that  talent  was  displayed  in  some 
of  the  articles  (this,  of  course,  we  were  ready  to  do). 
'  You  did  not  expect  so  much  from  that  set,'  says  an- 
other.   '  No,  we  did  not ! '  " 

Lux  Mundi  ceased,  on  December  31,  with  its  fourth 
shining,  and  Henry  Trumbull  wrote  its  leading  edi- 
torial, Last  Speech  and  Dying  Confession."  "  Alex- 
ander the  Great,  'tis  said,  wept  when  he  found  there 
were  no  more  worlds  to  conquer,  that  his  work  was 
accomplished,  that  there  were  bounds  to  his  power, 
and  that  he  must  rest  content  as  master  of  a  single 
world.  With  feelings  like  those  that  actuated  the 
Macedonian,  the  editors  of  Lux  Mundi  now  present 
themselves  before  the  public  but  to  bid  farewell." 

And  in  the  same  issue  the  paper  bids  farewell  to  its 
editors  in  an  editorial  written  by  Mary  Trumbull  in 
prophetic  vein,  thus  apostrophizing  Henry : 

"  And  to  you  H.  also  many  wishes  with  our  farewell. 
...  A  merry,  merry  life  to  you  !    We  shall  hear  of  you 


Early  Literary  Te7idencies  57 


doubtless  in  the  future  as  a  school-master  exchanging 
the  seal  rings  and  the  Genin  hat  for  the  fur  cap  and 
the  brown  quaker  coat  of  a  pedagogue,  in  some  little 
district  school-house  in  the  back  woods.  Or  perhaps 
as  an  editor  of  a  country  paper.  If  the  latter,  apply 
always  to  us,  and  we  will  furnish  you  with  news  from 
the  latest  steamer,  and  like  items  at  least  six  weeks 
before  you  could  procure  them  in  any  other  way. 
For  you  also  a  kind  farewell !  " 

^  i(i  if.  i(i 

In  the  issue  of  the  New  London  Star  and  Democrat 
for  April  13,  1850,  young  Trumbull,  then  not  quite 
twenty  years  old,  gave  his  views  as  "  A  Lover  of 
Justice  "  on  the  famous  trial  of  Dr.  John  W.  Web- 
ster for  the  murder  of  Dr.  George  Parkman.  Dr. 
Webster  was  a  member  of  the  faculty  of  Harvard 
University,  and  was  indebted  to  Dr.  Parkman  for 
money  which  the  latter  urgently  required  of  him. 
Dr.  Parkman  was  missed  shortly  after  an  appointment 
which  he  was  known  to  have  had  with  Dr.  Webster. 
The  discovery  by  Ephraim  Littlefield,  the  Medical 
College  janitor,  of  the  fact  that  parts  of  a  human  body 
were  being  burned  at  night  by  Dr.  Webster  in  the  col- 
lege furnace,  led  to  Webster's  arrest. 

The  trial  was  the  public  sensation  of  the  hour,  and 
Henry  Trumbull  went  twice  from  Stonington  to  see  it, 
the  second  time  with  his  brother-in-law,  William  C. 
Prime,  who,  as  a  member  of  the  New  York  bar,  by 
courtesy  had  seats  for  both  with  the  members  of  the 
Boston  bar.  An  editorial  in  the  New  London  Demo- 
crat quickened  Trumbull  to  write  a  vigorous  and  un- 
equivocal letter  to  the  editor,  giving  his  views  of  what 


58  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


seemed  to  him  the  point  at  issue.  After  squarely  dif- 
fering with  the  editor  as  to  the  latter's  dissent  from 
the  justice  of  the  death  sentence  in  the  case  of  such 
a  man,  he  writes : 

"  *  But,'  you  say,  '  an  awful  responsibility  rests  upon 
the  jury  that  convicted  him,'  and  you  ask,  *  How  are 
they  to  restore  that  life  which  belongs  alone  to  God, 
but  which  they  surrender  to  the  executioner  ?  ' 

"  If  I  am  not  mistaken,  the  jury  were  empanelled 
and  sworn  to  attend  to  the  evidence,  to  receive  infor- 
mation on  points  of  law  from  the  Judge,  and  then  to 
say  whether  or  no  the  prisoner  was  guilty  of  the  crime 
charged.  They  were  not  to  condemn  him  to  death ; 
they  were  not  to  say  whether  he  should  be  executed, 
imprisoned,  or  set  at  liberty ;  they  were  simply  to  say 
whether  or  no  the  evidence  proved  him  guilty.  They 
were  bound  to  render  a  verdict  in  accordance  with 
their  convictions,  and  there  ceases  their  responsi- 
bility." 

And  again,  when  his  views  were  attacked  in  a  later 
issue  by  one  signing  himself  Sigma,"  he  answers 
thus : 

"  *  Sigma '  desires  to  know  why  I  would  have  Prof. 
W.  hung.  He  is  answered  by  Judge  Shaw  in  his 
remarks  upon  sentencing  Webster.  It  is  because 
against  the  crime  of  murder  the  law  has  pronounced 
its  severest  penalty,  in  these  few  and  simple  words : 
*  Every  person  who  shall  commit  the  crime  of 
murder  shall  suffer  the  punishment  of  death  for 
the  same.* 

"  In  my  former  article  I  wrote  as  a  lover  of  Justice^ 
without  mercy^  I  will  admit,  but  not  as  a  hater  of 


Early  Literary  Tendencies  59 


mercy.  I  pressed  the  claims  of  Justice.  I  said  not 
that  it  would  be  wrong  to  pity  him,  or  that  pity  for 
him  would  be  a  detriment  *  to  the  heart  or  morals  or 
religion.' " 

In  this  youthful  controversy,  carried  on  with  vigor 
and  sharp  thrusting,  he  was  holding  fast  to  one  thing. 
He  was  not  then  thinking  about  mercy,  nor  did  he 
consider  it  the  true  point  at  issue.  Webster  was  a 
convicted  murderer.  The  law  was  clear, — the  law 
must  be  carried  out. 

But  young  Trumbull  had  quite  another  side, — a 
generously  playful  and  whimsical  attitude  toward  men 
and  things  which  gave  him  a  popularity  altogether 
exceptional  for  one  having  such  clear  and  vigorously 
expressed  convictions.  His  friendly  intercourse  was 
not  bounded  by  Stonington.  Mr.  D.  S.  Ruddock, 
of  the  New  London  Star  and  Democrat,  his  editorial 
opponent  in  the  Webster  controversy,  was  the  printer 
of  "  Lux  Mundi,"  Henry  Trumbull's  first  editorial 
venture.  Henry's  pen  was  dipped  in  acid,  or  in  a 
kindlier  fluid,  with  his  changing  moods.  In  Feb- 
ruary, 1850,  he  wrote  to  Mr.  Ruddock,  over  the 
signature  of  "  One  of  the  Olden  Time,"  an  ac- 
count of  the  result  of  a  "  psychologist's "  visit  to 
Stonington  : 

"  As  each  succeeding  day,  by  the  palsied  hand, 
the  tottering  gait,  the  dimmed  eye,  the  useless  ear,  I 
am  reminded  of  the  proximity  of  the  grave,  and  that 
my  end  is  not  far  off,  I  feel  more  and  more  the  price- 
less value  of  the  short  space  of  time  allotted  to  me  on 
earth.  .  .  . 

"Psychology!  psychology!     Oh,  how  would  our 


6o  He7iry  Clay  Trttmbull 


fathers  have  valued  this  wonderful  science  !  How 
much  anguish  and  misery  would  have  been  spared 
the  generations  that  are  gone,  had  they  possessed  a 
knowledge  of  this  heaven-born  science  !  .  .  .  Friend 
Ruddock,  have  you  made  this  science  your  study  ?  . . . 
If  not,  do  so.    Seek  information.  .  .  . 

"  But  a  few  weeks  ago  a  professor  of  this  science 
condescended  to  visit  our  humble  village,  and  by 
flaming  handbills  announced  that  he  would  perform 
any  required  miracles  for  12^  cents;  and  for  ;^io.oo 
he  would  unfold  the  mysteries  of  the  science  to  any 
one  desiring  information.  ,  .  . 

"  As  you  may  never  have  witnessed  any  of  the  ex- 
periments, I  will  explain  to  you  the  modus  operaridi 
of  the  psychological  performer.  In  the  first  place, 
the  *  coin '  consists  of  a  five-cent  piece  (or  smooth 
*  four-pence ' )  inserted  in  a  bit  of  lead  about  the  size 
of  a  quarter  of  a  dollar.  The  *  victim  '  is  required  to 
hold  this  in  his  right  hand  at  arm's  length,  and  look 
intently  at  it,  without  winking,  for  four  hours.  If  he 
has  any  unpleasant  sensations  about  the  arm,  or  water 
starts  from  his  eyes,  before  that  time,  it  is  proof  posi- 
tive that  he  is  a  *  natural  subject.' 

"  The  operator  then  seizes  the  right  hand  of  his 
subject  with  his  right  hand,  and  inserts  the  middle 
finger  of  his  left  between  the  olecranon  process  of 
the  ulna  and  the  inner  condyle  of  the  humerus, 
touching  the  ulna  nerve  (commonly  called  the 
'  crazy  bone '),  and  if,  upon  pressing  this,  the  pa- 
tient feels  any  tingling  sensation  in  his  fingers' 
ends,  he  is  *  a  gone  case';  he  is  fully  'charged 
with  electricity.'  " 


Early  Literary  Tendencies  6i 


Mr.  Ruddock  was  well  acquainted  with  the  varying 
temper  of  his  young  correspondent.  He  acquired 
added  respect  for  him  through  a  characteristic  inci- 
dent of  which  he  took  note  in  his  paper : 

"The  Millennium  Almost  Here." 

"Some  months  since,  one  of  our  young  friends  from 
one  of  the  towns  in  this  county  was  in  the  city  trans- 
acting business.  Before  leaving  for  his  residence  a 
violent  rain  storm  came  up.  Not  supposing  that  such 
an  event  would  occur,  he  did  not  provide  himself  with 
an  Umbrella  before  leaving  home.  We  loaned  him  ours. 

"  Immediately  after  his  arrival  home  he  sent  the 
umbrella  to  our  address,  but  by  some  'hook  or  crook, 
which  this  much  defamed  article  is  apt  to  take  in  its 
transition  from  one  place  to  another,  it  failed  to  reach 
us.  Last  Saturday  the  gentleman  (for  he  is  nothing 
else)  was  in  our  office.  We  noticed  as  we  were  con- 
versing with  him  a  roguishness  in  his  manner  that 
implied  'I'll  astonish  you  soon.'  Presently  he  handed 
us  a  splendid  new  silk  Umbrella^  with  a  patent  sheath, 
remarking  *  I  have  returned  your  umbrella.' 

"  We  could  hardly  believe  our  eyes  and  ears,  not 
that  we  considered  the  gentleman  incapable  of  such 
an  honorable  act,  not  by  a  *  long  chalk,'  but  because 
it  is  an  act  so  seldom  performed.  The  umbrella  we 
loaned  him  was  a  cotton  one,  partly  worn.  Such 
noble  acts  as  these  induce  one  to  believe  that  there  is 
in  this  world  of  trouble  something  besides  mendacity. 
We  would  mention  the  gentleman's  name  did  we 
believe  he  would  not  '  protest.' 

P.  S. — We  here  beg  to  remark  that  we  have 


62  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


another  cottoit  umbrella  left,  which  we  will  loan  to 
any  of  our  friends  upon  the  condition  that  " 

The  journalistic  tendency  was  in  the  blood  of  the 
young  Trumbulls.  Their  grandfather  and  his  son 
Samuel  were  of  that  craft  by  reason  of  their  oppor- 
tunities in  Norwich  and  in  Stonington.  Lux  Mundi 
and  other  early  literary  efforts  were  singularly  pro- 
phetic. They  were  far  more  so  than  a  prophecy 
concerning  Henry  which,  with  its  circumstances,  is 
described  by  Miss  Chesebrough,  who  saw  and  heard 
as  an  opportune  witness  : 

On  one  occasion,  walking  down  Main  Street  I 
observed  a  group  just  around  the  corner  in  front  of 
Dr.  George  E.  Palmer's  office.  A  chair  had  been 
brought  out  from  the  office,  in  which  was  seated  Henry 
Trumbull,  then  a  youth  of  nineteen,  while  a  phrenolo- 
gist was  passing  his  hands  over  his  head,  observing 
the  development  of  the  various  *  bumps '  (that  was 
what  the  unlettered  styled  them),  and  descanting  upon 
the  qualities  and  endowments  of  his  subject.  I  must 
have  arrived  near  the  close ;  I  remember  only  this, — 
the  final  summing  up,— that  the  young  man  would  do 
a  great  deal  of  talking  of  what  he  was  to  do,  but  it 
would  be  mere  talk, — he  would  accomplish  little  in 
life.  I  shall  never  forget  the  look  that  flashed  over 
Henry's  face,  as,  with  a  funny  little  laugh,  he  darted 
from  under  the  phrenologist's  hands  and  disappeared 
round  the  corner." 

***** 

Mr.  Trumbull  was  soon  to  leave  his  boyhood  home 
in  Stonington.    He  was  always  gratefully  and  keenly 


Early  Literary  Tendencies  63 


conscious  of  his  debt  to  the  httle  seashore  village 
with  its  sturdy  independence,  its  world-wide  interests, 
its  privileges  of  education  in  school  and  out.  Before 
he  had  reached  manhood  Henry  had  become  familiar 
with  the  life  of  the  sea,  its  hazards  and  its  charms. 
From  the  observatory  in  his  father's  house  he  had 
seen  the  ill-fated  "  Atlantic  "  go  to  pieces  foot  by  foot 
on  Fisher's  Island  in  the  great  gale  of  November, 
1846.  He  had  sailed  under  Captain  Nat  Palmer,  the 
typical  Yankee  skipper,  an  undaunted  master  of  cir- 
cumstances. From  his  childhood,  Henry  had  lived 
in  a  home  atmosphere  of  classical  culture,  New  Eng- 
land wit,  and  strict  religious  practises,  and  he  had 
taken  an  active  part  in  the  local  Sunday-school  work. 
At  the  same  time  he  had  been  a  social  leader  in  the 
village,  a  light-hearted,  winsome  young  fellow,  with 
an  eye  to  the  esthetic  in  the  life  about  him.  Although 
he  had  gained  in  character  and  experience  through 
his  political,  apothecar}^  railroad,  and  banking  experi- 
ences, he  had  not  gained  any  definite  purpose  for  the 
future,  nor  was  he  giving  much  thought  to  the  deeper 
things  of  life. 

But  all  these  Stonington  experiences  were  germinal. 
They  bore  fruit  with  singular  fertility,  and  in  their 
kind.  Among  them  all  none  found  deeper  root 
than  a  single  word  from  Gurdon  Trumbull,  the  some- 
what taciturn  father  of  this  warm-hearted,  keenly 
sensitive,  and  generous  boy.  Gurdon  Trumbull  knew 
the  lad's  nature  and  its  perils.  Father  and  son  were 
walking  together  one  day.  Suddenly  Gurdon  Trum- 
bull stopped,  turned  abruptly  to  his  son,  and  asked 
with  great  earnestness : 


64  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


Henry,  would  you  like  to  be  respected  and  looked 
up  to  by  all  your  companions,  as  you  grow  up  ?  " 
"  Of  course  I  would,  father." 

"  Well,  if  you  won't  drink,  or  use  tobacco,  or  dance, 
or  play  cards,  you  will  be  respected  by  others,  if  you 
have  nothing  else  than  this  to  recommend  you.  You 
will  be  a  leader  through  this  self-control,  even  if  the 
other  boys  have  more  brains  or  more  friends  than 
you  have."  Then  he  relapsed  into  silence.  But  the 
boy  understood.    He  was  not  to  be  of  the  crowd. 


BUILDING  RAILROADS  AND  CHARACTER 


Stand  in  the  place  God  has  given  you  to  fill. 
Find  out  what  God  would  have  you  to  be,  and 
to  do,  and  to  say,  and  then  be,  and  do,  and  say- 
it  fearlessly,  independently.  In  all  things  be 
guided  by  God's  teachings,  not  by  the  opinions 
of  those  about  you.  "  Let  this  mind  be  in  you 
which  was  also  in  Christ  Jesus  ; ' '  and  then 
"do  as  you  have  a  mind  to." — An  editorial 
paragraph. 

In  the  lower  sense  of  common  usage,  a  man's 
"  character"  is  the  sum  of  his  qualities,  whereby 
he  is  distinguished  from  other  individuals.  In 
the  higher  and  more  restricted  sense,  ' '  charac- 
ter" is  a  pre-eminence  of  personality  in  the  direc- 
tion of  one' s  better  and  nobler  being.  In  either 
the  one  sense  or  the  other,  character  is  the 
measure  of  the  man  ;  for  the  sum  of  a  man's 
qualities  as  an  individual  is  the  man's  self ;  and 
the  pre-eminence  of  a  man's  distinctive  qualities 
marks  the  man' s  peculiar  self.  For  all  practical 
purposes,  therefore,  it  is  sufficient  say,  that  a 
man' s  superiority  of  personality  in  the  direction 
of  the  right  is  the  real  measure  of  the  man. — 
Character-Shaping  and  Character-Shozuing. 


CHAPTER  V 


BUILDING  RAILROADS  AND  CHARACTER 

In  the  autumn  of  185 1,  when  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 
was  in  his  twenty-second  year,  he  left  his  Stonington 
home,  and  joined  his  brother  James  in  Hartford. 
James  was  then  assistant  to  the  Connecticut  Secretary 
of  State,  a  position  he  had  occupied  since  1847. 
His  father  was  at  this  time  Assistant  Commissioner 
of  the  School  Fund,  and  later  the  Commissioner. 
Henry  had  purposed  to  secure  a  college  education, 
but  he  was  beset  with  serious  lung  trouble  which 
had  caused  his  family  much  anxiety.  He  was 
obliged  to  give  up  any  thought  of  college  life,  and 
was  compelled  to  turn  his  attention  to  other  pursuits. 
His  brother  Charles,  then  in  Williams  College,  con- 
stantly lamented  the  fact  that  Henry  was  not  with 
him  in  that  institution,  at  one  time  saying  to  a  friend, 
"'Hen'  would  shine  among  the  *Kaps'!"  [Phi  Beta 
Kappas],  as  he  ruefully  contemplated  what  he  thought 
was  his  own  inability  to  shine  anywhere. 

Henry  had  been  offered,  before  he  was  twenty- 
one  years  old,  the  cashiership  of  the  new  Ocean 
Bank  in  Stonington,  but  his  health  was  such  that 
the  milder  air  of  Hartford  seemed  more  conducive 
to  full  recovery  than  the  keen  climate  of  the  coast. 
Through  his  brother  James*  influence  Henry  was 

67 


68  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


called  to  a  clerical  position  in  the  engineering  and  pay- 
department  of  the  Hartford,  Providence  and  Fishkill 
Railroad  (certain  sections  of  which  were  then  in  pro- 
cess of  construction),  of  which  Mr.  James  M.  Bunce 
was  the  President.  This  keen  and  energetic  railroad 
president  was  a  man  of  marked  personality.  One 
of  his  sons,  the  late  Rear-Admiral  Francis  M.  Bunce, 
was  a  noble  representative  of  the  highest  type  of  the 
United  States  naval  officer.  Another  son,  Jonathan 
B.  Bunce,  was  for  years  the  President  of  the  Phoenix 
Mutual  Life  Insurance  Company,  and  is  a  man  held 
in  high  honor  in  the  world  of  finance. 

Just  before  he  entered  upon  his  new  duties  Mr. 
Trumbull  spent  a  Sunday  in  Mr.  Bunce's  home, 
where  he  met  Edward  Kimball,  who  had  married  a 
niece  of  the  railroad  president.  Mr.  Kimball  will 
be  most  widely  remembered  as  D.  L.  Moody's 
Sunday-school  teacher,  though  he  was  distinguished 
for  years  as  a  "  finangelist,"  a  remarkably  successful 
leader  in  the  raising  of  money  to  clear  churches 
from  debt. 

The  two  younger  men  were  speaking  of  Mr. 
Bunce's  energy  and  determination  and  intensity  of 
purpose,  when  Mr.  Bunce  suddenly  exclaimed  to 
Kimball : 

Edward,  nothing  but  Omnipotence  can  stand  in 
the  way  of  a  determined  man  !  " 

That  saying  was  a  spur  to  Henry  Trumbull  as  long 
as  he  drew  breath,  and  fought  the  fight  of  a  man  in 
the  onset  of  circumstances.  If  James  M.  Bunce  gave 
him  nothing  but  that  one  dynamic  epigram,  he  gave 
him  a  life-impulse  that  of  itself  was  worth  all  the 


Building  Railroads  and  Character  69 


costly  and  tedious  toil  of  his  days  and  nights  in  the 
railroad  service. 

And  the  work  he  had  undertaken  was  hard.  On 
October  2,  1851,  he  wrote  to  his  mother: 

I  commenced  work  at  the  railroad  office  on  Tuesday  morn- 
ing [September  30],  and  since  that  time  I  have  worked  harder 
than  I  ever  did  before  in  the  same  time  in  my  life,  I  have  to 
commence  work  at  a  few  minutes  past  7  o'clock  A.  M.,  and 
work  until  ^  past  9  P.  M.,  with  about  ^  an  hour  allowed  for 
dinner  and  the  same  for  supper.  I  have  to  walk  from  the 
U.  S.  Hotel  to  the  depot  to  and  from  every  meal,  of  course, 
and  also  have  to  walk  from  the  depot  to  the  Exchange  Bank 
in  State  Street  a  few  times  every  day,  and  run  around  promis- 
cuously on  errands. 

My  work  in  the  office  occupies  me  just  all  the  time,  so 
that  my  running  around  saves  me  no  work  at  the  office.  I 
have  had  apportioned  to  me  the  entire  charge  of  the  ticket  de- 
partment of  the  whole  road,  which  I  can  assure  you  is  no 
small  item.  I  have  to  give  out  the  tickets  to  the  Hartford 
ticket  master,  to  the  agents  at  all  the  stations,  to  the  conductors, 
etc.,  and  keep  an  accurate  account  of  them  in  books  prepared 
for  the  purpose.  I  have  to  examine  all  the  tickets  collected 
by  all  the  conductors,  receive  all  moneys  from  them,  examine 
all  their  accounts,  keep  accounts  with  all  the  stage  agents 
along  the  line  of  the  road,  and  have  entire  charge  of  all  settle- 
ments for  tickets  with  all  the  sub-agents  and  with  other  roads. 
This  has  to  be  done  with  the  same  correctness  that  the  cash 
account  at  a  bank  should  be  kept.  An  error  in  this  case  is 
more  fatal  than  in  the  other,  for  if  I  make  a  single  error  in  my 
ticket  account,  or  in  distributing  tickets,  I  must^i?/  for  it  and 
there  is  no  possibility  of  ever  rectifying  the  error. 

I  am,  however,  enabled,  by  my  former  experience  in  the 
same  line  at  Stonington,  to  perform  this  labor  with  but  little  of 
that  inconvenience  that  would  inevitably  have  attended  my  first 
efforts  had  I  been  a  "green  hand."  .  .  , 

I  am  very  much  pleased  with  my  situation,  although  I  have 
to  "fly  around"  a  little  brisker  than  I  am  accustomed  to. 


70  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


At  once  his  mother  answered : 

I  miss  you  very  much  indeed.  Will  you  always  have  so 
much  to  do,  or  are  you  now  bringing  up  work?  Must  you 
forego  entirely  the  pleasure  of  Society,  and  your  evenings  be 
wholly  occupied  ?  Really,  my  son,  I  have  shed  a  great  many 
tears  about  it.  But  you  are  not  obliged  to  stay.  If  you  find 
you  cannot  perform  the  duties  imposed  upon  you  without 
injury  to  your  health,  why  leave  it  at  once  and  come  home. 
Under  no  circumstances  stay  if  you  are  sick,  but  hasten  home. 

Henry's  position  was  indeed  no  sinecure,  or  even 
one  that  a  moderately  good  modern  clerk  would  have 
chosen.    In  answer  to  his  mother's  letter  he  wrote: 

I  was  very  sorry  to  think  that  my  last  letter  home  gave  you 
the  idea  that  I  was  overworked  at  the  Rail  Road  Office.  It  is  by 
no  means  so,  nor  did  I  intend  for  you  to  think  so.  I  wrote  as 
I  did  to  satisfy  you  and  father  that  I  had  enough  to  do  to 
keep  me  out  of  mischief.  I  shall  be  employed  steadily  day  and 
evening  all  the  time,  but  I  have  no  work  that  I  cannot  do 
easily,  and  I  am  not  hurried  at  all, 

I  am  delighted  with  my  place,  and  am  far  from  regretting 
that  I  am  confined  to  the  office  evenings.  If  I  can  only  satisfy 
Mr.  Bunce  that  I  am  worth  my  salary  [it  was  $400  a  year]  and 
can  prove  to  him  that  I  am  willing  to  work,  I  ask  no  more. 
.  .  .  .  He  is  the  most  particular  man  I  ever  saw  in  my  life.  I 
never  saw  any  one  that  approached  him  in  that  respect.  He 
gives  me  always  very  expHcit  directions  as  to  how  a  thing  is  to 
be  done,  and  I  always  do  exactly  as  he  tells  me ;  but  he  gener- 
ally finds  that  what  he  ordered  done  does  not  suit  him  as  well  as 
he  thought  it  would,  and  therefore  he  gives  me  directions  to  do 
it  over  in  a  different  manner. 

On  Monday  of  this  week  I  wrote  26  long  letters  for  him 
between  the  hours  of  8  in  the  morning  and  9  in  the  evening, 
besides  doing  my  usual  work  with  the  ticket  agents,  conduc- 
tors, &c.  Mr.  Bunce  goes  ahead  of  Capt.  Willinms  [of  Ston- 
ington]  in  questioning  the  clerks  about  small  matters,  and  in 
looking  into  everything  and  overseeing  everybody  from  Super- 


Building  Railroads  and  Character  71 


intendent  to  Brakemen  .  .  .  Mr.  Goodrich,  the  Secretary  of  the 
Company,  whose  immediate  clerk  I  am,  is  a  very  pleasant  man 
and  one  whom  I  like  very  much. 

Letters  from  his  parents  expressing  concern  about 
his  overwork  were  frequent,  and  they  felt  that  there 
was  good  reason  for  their  anxiety.  He  led  a  busy 
life  for  one  who  was  not  supposed  to  be  in  robust 
health.  A  single  instance  of  his  disregard  of  personal 
comfort  will  show  in  some  measure  the  grounds  for 
maternal  anxiety.  Somewhat  later  in  his  railroad 
experience  he  gave  her  a  glimpse  of  his  doings  that 
was  not  reassuring : 

I  reached  Stirling  Hotel  at  Bridgeport  on  Tuesday  night 
at  10  o'clock  and  passed  the  night  there  very  quietly,  and  with 
much  more  comfort  than  at  the  Central  Village  Hotel.  On 
Wednesday  morning  I  walked  out  to  "Ivaniston"  (Barnum's 
Villa)  and  saw  that  interesting  specimen  of  architecture,  with 
its  fancy  barns,  green-houses,  wash-houses,  fountains,  statues, 
ponds,  swans,  ducks,  dogs,  horses,  hogs,  etc.,  for  as  the 
grounds  are  open  to  all  I  spent  some  time  examining  the 
premises.  At  yi  past  10  A.  M.  I  took  the  train  on  the 
Housatonic  R.  R.  for  Hawleyville,  and  stopping  there  I 
found  I  must  take  an  open  sleigh  to  Danbury  via  Bethel,  about 
7  miles  distance.  As  the  snow  was  falling  very  fast  at  that 
time,  and  it  was  very  cold,  this  ride  did  not  prove  especially 
pleasant,  for  having  left  my  office  this  winter  to  go  to  and  from 
the  center  of  the  city,  I  am  rather  tender  than  otherwise. 

Having  completed  my  business  in  Danbury  in  a  very  short 
time,  I  thought  that  if  I  could  reach  the  N.  Y.  &  N.  H.  R.  R. 
at  Norwalk  by  5  o'clock  I  should  be  able  to  reach  Hartford 
the  same  night  in  the  express  train  that  started  at  that  time 
from  Norwalk,  so  hiring  a  sleigh  and  driver,  I  started  for 
Norwalk,  a  distance  of  22  miles.  I  had  no  comforter  or  scarf, 
no  thick  gloves,  and  nothing  on  but  what  I  wear  every  day  to 
the  office  and  back,  and  as  the  thermometer  stood  last  evening  in 


72  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


Hartford  at  i6°  below  zero,  you  can  imagine  that  this  was  any- 
thing but  a  pleasant  ride,  the  more  especially  as  the  driver  proved 
to  be  drunken,  and  lost  the  road  several  times,  wandered  some 
distance  from  the  direct  course,  and  after  a  ride  of  about  25  miles 
in  an  open  sleigh,  I  reached  Norwalk  about  6  o'clock,  too  late 
of  course  to  reach  Hartford  that  night.  Finding  an  accommo- 
dation train  about  leaving  for  Bridgeport,  I  took  that  train, 
spent  last  night  also  at  the  Stirling  House,  left  this  morning  for 
New  Haven,  was  detained  six  hours  at  that  place  by  a  break- 
down on  the  N.  Y.  &  N.  H.  Road,  and  to-night  I  am  here 
again  in  my  room  safe,  and  I  believe  sound  in  body  and  limb. 

His  occupation  was  not  a  matter  of  hours  alone 
as  he  saw  it,  but  as  he  labored  from  day  to  day  he 
was  putting  to  the  test  principles  that  he  had 
learned  at  home.  A  contemptuous  disregard  of 
consequences  when  doing  the  right  was  a  part  of 
Henry  Trumbull's  very  nature.  He  did  not  destroy 
that  fine  sense  of  individual,  sharply  defined  responsi- 
bility for  his  own  duty  by  trifling  with  the  allurements 
of  a  half-way  policy  in  his  relations  with  others  to 
whom  he  was  accountable.  He  was  ready  to  master 
his  impulses,  to  hold  himself  in  check,  to  drive  him- 
self with  the  whip  of  absolute  duty-doing  in  silent  and 
sturdy  independence.  He  set  barriers  to  his  desires, 
and  had  an  eye  single  to  the  doing  of  a  man's  work, 
growing  under  the  pruning  knife,  and  gaining  strength 
and  stability.    He  kept  himself  under  control. 

"Yet  not  for  power  (power  of  herself  would  come  uncall'd 
for),  but  to  live  by  law. 
Acting  the  law  we  live  by  without  fear  ; 
And,  because  right  is  right,  to  follow  right 
Were  wisdom  in  the  scorn  of  consequence." 


In  the  relentless  routine  of  the  railroad,  he  was  dis- 


Building  Railroads  and  Chai^acter  73 

covering  that  a  man  grows  b\'  restraint  The  free  and 
easy  days  of  his  boy-Hfe  in  Stonington  were  gone. 
They  had  slipped  into  the  past  with  a  celerity  that 
amazed  him.  What  he  was  in  Stonington  had  seemed 
to  him  what  he  was  to  be ;  yet  after  a  month  or  two 
of  the  exacting  railroad  office  drudger}^  he  wrote  to 
his  sister  Mary : 

You  would  hardly  recognize  your  brother,  the  "  Hen  Trum- 
bull," "beau  general"  of  Stonington,  the  foppishly  particular 
young  "  devotee  of  fashion,"  the  zealous  worshipper  of  new- 
cravats  and  tight  boots,  the  admirer  of  every  pretty  female  face, 
and  the  leader  of  the  Stonington  Band  of  Loafers,  in  the  plod- 
ding and  industrious  clerk,  .  .  .  who,  with  soiled  linen,  care- 
lessly tied  cravat,  thick  boots,  and  a  suit  of  clothes  that  were 
long  since  renounced  as  unfit  for  further  wear  in  Stonington, 
quietly  walks  down  a  back  street  to  the  R.  R,  office  at  Yz  past 
7  o'clock  each  morning,  and  there  scratches  away,  copying 
unintelligible  and  unmeaning  legal  scrawls,  or  foots  up  col- 
umn after  column  of  tedious  figures,  until  ^  past  9  in  the 
evening,  with  the  exception  of  half  hour  each  at  dinner  and 
supper ;  who  dechnes  all  invitations  to  parties,  sewing  socie- 
ties, or  "  sociables,"  who  cannot  find  time  to  attend  concerts, 
lectures,  or  places  of  amusement ;  who  has  called  upon  but 
one  young  lady,  and  upon  her  but  once  since  his  arrival  in 
Hartford  to  enter  upon  his  new  duties ;  whose  only  reading 
consists  of  "  Day  Books,"  "  Cash  Books,"  and  "  Letter  Books," 
and  whose  only  comfort  is  in  writing  home  once  a  week,  in 
hearing  from  mother  as  often,  and  in  occasionally  meeting  a 
Stonington  acquaintance  upon  the  arrival  of  the  Eastern  train. 

Yet,  Mary,  notwithstanding  that  there  is  such  a  change  in 
my  situation  and  habits  since  my  arrival  in  Hartford  two  months 
since,  will  you  believe  it,  I  am  as  happy  as  a  "  clam  "  is  gener- 
ally supposed  to  be  when  a  high  tide  and  a  full  sea  protect  it 
from  all  dangers  of  hoes  and  rapacious  baitseeking  ravishers. 
To  be  sure  my  enjoyment  is  of  rather  a  different  nature  than  it 
has  been  heretofore,  and  for  a  short  time  my  employment  was 


74  Henry  Clay  Trmnbull 


exceedingly  irksome  to  me,  and  I  was  blessed  with  exceeding 
low  spirits,  with  anything  but  good  health,  but  I  cannot  be 
uncomfortable  for  any  length  of  time.  I  soon  adapt  myself  to 
circumstances,  and  already  I  have  come  to  look  at  my  close 
confinement  and  constant  employment  as  a  matter  of  course. 

Already  have  I  given  up  all  the  little  ambitious  aspirations 
I  might  once  have  indulged,  and  have  determined  to  find 
enjoyment  and  satisfaction  in  devoting  myself  constantly  to 
my  employment,  and  forgetting  all  pleasures  I  have  heretofore 
enjoyed.    You  may  possibly  doubt  this,  but  it  is  really  so. 

And  in  the  month  following  he  gave  evidence  of 
his  new  ideas  of  work  and  duty  during  a  visit  to  his 
old  home.  His  parents,  in  their  desire  to  have  him 
prolong  his  stay  as  much  as  possible,  had  urged  him 
to  stay  beyond  what  seemed  to  him  the  proper  hour 
of  return  to  his  work.  The  temptation  was  strong, 
and  one  to  which  many  a  young  man  employed  as  he 
was  by  a  family  friend,  would  have  yielded  with  not 
much  thought  of  his  higher  obligations. 

Yet  Henry  knew  that  he  ought  to  leave,  and  he 
left.  Soon  after  reaching  Hartford  he  wrote  to  his 
mother  concerning  his  victory : 

I  am  still  confident,  as  I  then  felt,  that  it  would  have  been 
very  wrong  for  me  to  have  remained  in  Stonington  until  too 
late  to  reach  the  early  train  from  New  London,  and  since  I 
have  been  here  and  found  how  much  there  was  for  me  to  do, 
I  have  been  thankful  that  I  was  enabled  to  resist  so  great  a 
temptation  as  was  placed  before  me. 

This  spirit  of  his  was  shown  in  a  battle  with  self 
on  one  occasion  which  would  have  seemed  to  most 
young  men  to  offer  no  occasion  for  a  battle.  In  the 
engineering  department,  in  which  Henry  eventually 


Building  Railroads  and  Character  75 


became  paymaster  of  construction,  the  young  clerks 
had  fallen  into  the  habit  of  borrowing  from  the  chief 
engineer's  desk,  in  his  absence,  an  inkstand  contain- 
ing a  special  ink.  Henry  accepted  this  habit  as  one 
of  the  office  practises,  and  one  day  was  using  the  ink- 
stand when  his  chief,  Mr.  Samuel  Ashburner,  needed 
it  at  once.  Sending  into  the  room  where  the  clerks 
were  working,  Mr.  Ashburner  had  the  young  scribe 
and  the  borrowed  inkstand  brought  before  him. 

"  Henry,"  he  said,  with  kindly  emphasis,  "  I  want 
that  inkstand  to  remain  on  my  desk  at  all  times. 
You  must  never  take  it  away." 

"  I'll  bear  that  in  mind,  sir,"  answered  the  young 
man,  and  went  back  to  his  work. 

A  few  days  later  the  ink  was  missing  when  Mr. 
Ashburner  had  occasion  to  use  it.  Stepping  to  the 
door  of  the  clerks'  room,  he  called,  sharply,  "  Henry!  " 
Young  Trumbull  quickly  followed  him  into  the  next 
room. 

"  Henry,"  he  exclaimed,  "  what  did  I  tell  you  about 
that  inkstand  ?  " 

"  You  told  me  not  to  take  it  away  again." 

"  Yes,  and  I  meant  it.    Now,  bring  it  to  me  at  once  !  " 

Henry  passed  into  the  clerks'  room,  lifted  the  miss- 
ing inkstand  from  the  desk  of  another,  and  carried  it 
to  his  chief  As  he  placed  it  in  its  proper  place  and 
started  to  leave  the  room,  Mr.  Ashburner  looked 
severely  at  him.  "  Henry,"  he  said,  emphatically, 
"never  let  this  happen  again." 

"I'll  bear  in  mind  what  you  say,  sir,"  was  the  quiet 
answer. 

Later  in  the  day  the  clerk  who  had  been  at  fault 


76  Heniy  Clay  Trumbull 


manfully  explained  the  whole  matter  to  his  superior. 
Henry  was  at  once  summoned.  With  an  earnest  and 
troubled  look  Mr.  Ashburner  received  him.  "Why 
didn't  you  tell  me  this  morning  that  you  hadn't  taken 
that  inkstand  ?" 

"  You  didn't  ask  me,  sir,"  replied  Henry. 

The  chief  was  somewhat  nonplussed.  He  had 
found  men  ready  enough  to  lay  blame  upon  others, 
but  not  so  ready  to  keep  still,  when  even  a  word  of 
denial  might  clear  them.  Henry  Trumbull's  refine- 
ment of  moral  vision  was  a  revelation  to  him.  The 
interview  was  closed  with  an  apology  from  the  chief, 
and  Henry  went  back  to  his  desk.  He  was  building 
character  while  helping  to  build  railroads. 


THE  SPIRITUAL  AWAKENING 


Self-examination  usually  results  in  self-decep- 
tion. As  a  rule,  the  more  we  study  ourselves 
the  less  we  understand  ourselves,  and  at  the  best 
we  do  not  understand  ourselves  as  well  as  our 
fellows  do. — A?i  Editorial  Paragraph. 

It  is  not  as  an  exhibition  hall,  but  as  a  hos- 
pital, that  the  church  calls  for  members  and  that 
members  continue  in  it.  No  man  has  made 
such  progress  in  the  Christian  life  that  he  no 
longer  needs  the  helps  that  the  church  supplies 
to  him.  The  more  progress  one  makes  the  more 
he  desires  progress.  If  he  feels  that  he  is  good 
enough  to  be  a  church-member,  he  gives  evi- 
dence that  he  has  no  right  view  of  the  church  of 
Christ,  or  of  right  life  in  Christ. — -How  to  Deal 
with  Doubts  and  Doubters. 

A  man  has  more  power  through  believing  one 
thing  than  in  disbelieving  ten  thousand  things. 
It  is  a  man's  duty  to  disbelieve,  or  to  doubt,  at 
a  proper  time,  when  the  matter  has  been  well 
considered  ;  but  no  man  is  capable  of  disbeliev- 
ing, or  of  doubting,  intelligently  and  sensibly, 
unless  he  first  has  strong  and  positive  beliefs. 
A  man's  real  power  either  to  do  or  to  doubt 
starts  from  his  beliefs,  and  if  a  man  gives  atten- 
tion to  what  he  does  not  believe,  rather  than  to 
what  he  does  believe,  he  makes  no  progress,  and 
he  lacks  practical  power  in  any  direction. — How 
to  Deal  with  Doubts  and  Doubters. 


CHAPTER  VI 


THE  SPIRITUAL  AWAKENING 

There  are  constant  outcroppings  of  the  golden  vein 
of  character  through  all  these  early  Hartford  days. 
Henry  Trumbull  was  not  born  out  of  season,  and  his 
personality  was  in  full  accord  with  the  spirit  of  the 
times.  The  very  atmosphere  of  his  young  manhood 
was  tingling  with  the  keen  freshness  of  world-currents 
drawing  in  upon  him.  He  came  into  life  at  a  time 
when  the  national  character  was  as  costly  as  it  is  to- 
day ;  when  men  were  striking  lustily  at  evil ;  when 
the  breath  came  short  and  hard,  and  the  pulses  ran 
free  and  fast.  In  the  twenty  years  following  his  birth 
in  1830,  the  nation  was  awakened  to  a  restless  and 
overpowering  determination  to  have  some  things  set 
right,  to  get  at  truth,  to  uplift  the  neglected  and  the 
unendowed. 

In  the  three  decades  preceding  1830,  remarkable 
impulses  had  gathered  headway  and  direction  in 
Christian  enterprise.  State  missionary  associations 
in  Massachusetts,  New  Hampshire,  Rhode  Island, 
Maine,  and  Vermont,  were  organized  before  18 19. 
From  1806  to  18 10  the  movement  begun  in  Williams 
College  by  the  "  Haystack  Band  "  took  shape  in  the 
American  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Mis- 
sions.  One  of  the  first  five  missionaries  who  went  out 

79 


8o  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


from  this  company  was  Samuel  Nott,  Jr.;  and  Samuel 
Nott,  3rd,  a  son  of  this  pioneer  missionary,  was  a 
fellow-worker  with  Henry  Trumbull  in  the  railroad 
office.  In  the  Old  South  Church  the  Boston  City 
Missionary  Society  was  organized  in  18 16,  prototype 
— and  probably  the  earliest — of  the  work  in  Hartford 
which  was  to  engage  Henry  Trumbull's  first  conse- 
crated energies  in  Christ's  service. 

With  the  organization  of  the  American  Sunday 
School  Union  under  its  present  name,  in  1824,  began  a 
new  era  of  Sunday-school  extension  and  improvement, 
and  to  this  great  agency  for  Sunday-school  advance- 
ment Mr.  Trumbull  was  to  devote  seventeen  of  his 
busiest  and  most  fruitful  years,  from  1858  to  1875. 

From  1830  to  185 1  the  divisions  in  the  Presbyter- 
ian, the  Methodist,  and  the  Baptist  denominations  had 
come.  Mormon  doctrines  began  to  make  their  way 
across  the  country.  The  great  battle  of  the  forties  for 
Sabbath  observance  was  on,  and  the  right  was  making 
great  gains  in  railroad  and  social  and  business  regu- 
lations. Connecticut  was  in  the  forefront  of  this 
movement,  with  Chief  Justice  Williams  of  that  state 
as  president  of  the  American  and  Foreign  Sabbath 
Union.  He  was  Henry  Trumbull's  first  Sunday- 
school  teacher  after  the  young  man  had  given  him- 
self to  Christ.  These  were  the  years  of  development 
for  the  religious  press ;  of  the  Washingtonian  and 
other  temperance  movements,  a  cause  with  which 
Trumbull  was  identified  by  pledge  and  service;  of 
the  founding  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Associa- 
tion in  England  in  1844  by  George  Williams,  and  the 
forming  of  associations  in  Montreal  and  in  Boston  in 


The  Spiritual  Awakening  8i 


December,  185 1.  It  was  at  the  urgent  request  of 
present-day  leaders  of  this  organization  in  its  various 
branches  that  Dr.  Trumbull,  in  1901,  wrote  his  most 
widely-circulated  book,  Individual  Work  for  Indi- 
viduals." 

From  1826  to  1832  great  revivals  of  religion  swept 
the  country.  From  the  beginning  of  the  century  to 
the  year  1830  the  larger  evangelical  denominations 
had  increased,  some  twofold,  some  threefold,  and  one 
sevenfold.  It  is  estimated  that  in  the  five  months 
following  February,  183 1,  more  than  fifty  thousand 
persons  throughout  this  country,  including  more  than 
three  hundred  college  students,  professed  their  faith 
in  Christ. 

As  early  as  1826,  a  new  evangelistic  method 
emerged.  Classical  illustrations  and  ornate  phrases 
were  tabooed.  The  preacher  took  on  greater  bold- 
ness of  utterance ;  he  prayed  for  men  by  name ;  he 
read  requests  for  prayer ;  he  adopted  what  were 
called  "  new  measures."  And  among  all  the  evan- 
gelists none  was  more  radical,  more  startlingly  clear 
and  original  in  his  simplicity  and  forcefulness  than 
Charles  G.  Finney. 

It  was  during  a  time  of  comparative  relaxation  from 
the  general  religious  fervor  that  had  swayed  the  na^ 
tion  until  about  1845,  when  in  the  winter  of  1851-52, 
upon  his  return  from  England,  Finney  was  in  Hart- 
ford conducting  a  series  of  meetings.  Young  Trum- 
bull made  no  effort  to  attend  these  meetings.  In  the 
pre-occupation  of  his  office  work  he  hardly  gave  them 
a  thought,  assenting  tacitly  to  the  disesteem  in  which 
such  doings  were  held  by  his  every-day  companions. 


82  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


Letters  from  home  told  of  a  revival  of  interest  in 
religion  in  Stonington.  One  after  another  of  his  com- 
panions there  had  confessed  Christ,  but  the  news  from 
home  made  no  special  impression  upon  him  as  affect- 
ing him  in  any  direct  way.  One  noon,  however,  as 
he  was  returning  from  dinner  to  his  railroad-office 
work,  he  found  at  the  post-office  a  letter  from  an 
intimate  Stonington  friend,  Edmund  D,  Stanton,  one 
of  his  collaborators  in  his  first  editorial  venture,  "  Lux 
Mundi."  He  had  heard  from  this  friend  only  a  few 
days  before  concerning  the  revival  at  home.  He 
opened  the  letter,  read  a  few  lines,  saw  that  it  was  a 
personal  appeal  to  him,  and  at  once  thrust  the  letter 
into  his  pocket,  saying  to  a  companion,  I  think  there 
must  be  a  big  revival  in  Stonington  if  it  has  set  my 
old  friend  preaching  to  me." 

Young  Trumbull  reached  the  office,  which  was  on 
the  third  floor  of  one  of  the  station  towers,  but  he 
passed  up  the  stairs  to  the  fourth  floor,  and  entered  a 
small  map-closet,  where  he  shut  himself  in.  The 
letter  had  been  speaking  to  him  ever  since  he  saw  its 
first  lines.    He  now  opened  it  and  read  it  through : 

I  have  been  too  long  silent  The  prevalence  of  a  deep 
religious  feeling  in  this  community  has,  to  some  extent, 
opened  my  eyes  to  my  former  shortcomings,  and  led  me 
to  consider  what  was  my  duty  in  using  my  influence, 
small  as  it  may  be,  to  direct  the  attention  of  any  of  my 
friends  to  the  consideration  of  eternal  things.  Often  have  I 
^  felt  hke  speaking  to  you  on  this  subject,  but  as  often  have 
timidity  and  fear  kept  me  back.  We  have  been  companions 
and  intimate  friends  for  years.  We  have  enjoyed  the  society 
of  each  other,  and  together  the  society  of  others.  Seldom  has 
a  harsh  word,  or  an  unkind  feeling  marred  the  harmony  of  our 


The  Spiritual  Awakening  83 


intercourse,  and  it  seems  to  me  that  thus  what  you  might  have 
considered  from  another  an  act  of  intrusion,  you  will  consider 
from  me  an  evidence  of  my  sincere  regard,  and  my  earnest 
desire  for  your  good. " 

Then  Stanton  urged  him  to  seek  the  Saviour,  and 
find  peace  in  him,  and,  finally,  he  said  : 

Do  be  persuaded  by  me.  If  I  could  be  the  instrument, 
however  humble,  and  to  however  small  an  extent,  of  leading 
you  to  think  seriously  of  this,  I  should  consider  that  I  had 
more  than  repaid  your  kindness  and  interest  in  me.  Let  me 
beg  you,  by  the  remembrance  of  our  friendship,  but  more  than 
all,  by  the  regard  for  your  own  good,  think  of  these  things.  If 
any  impression  is  produced  on  your  mind  [by  this  appeal]  do 
not  attempt  to  drive  it  away,  but  seek  light  and  help  from  the 
only  source  whence  they  can  be  derived. 

I  have  now  tried  to  acquit  myself  of  a  duty  too  long  neg- 
lected, but  do  not  think  it  has  been  an  easy  one.  ...  I  shall 
not  ask  you  to  excuse  me  for  writing  you  so  serious  a  letter, 
the  first  one  [of  the  sort]  I  ever  wrote  you.  .  .  . 

I  may  never  have  the  courage  to  address  you  again  in  this 
manner,  and  if  I  do  not,  be  advised  by  me  now.  I  ask  no 
answer  to  this,  nor  shall  I  expect  any,  for  I  know  exactly  your 
feelings.  But  if  after  acknowledging  the  truth  of  what  I  have 
written,  you  determine  to  follow  my  advice,  I  beg  you  to  let 
me  know. 

Henry  Trumbull  was  touched  beyond  expression 
by  his  friend's  letter,  and  even  befi^re  he  had  read  it 
through  he  was  on  his  knees,  brokenly  asking  God's 
forgiveness  for  his  heedless  past.  Love  and  doubt 
were  over  against  each  other  in  another  contest  of  the 
world-old  warfare  for  the  soul  of  a  man.  Trumbull's 
highly  sensitive  nature  was  suffering  under  the  strain, 
yet  he  expected  love  to  win  the  fight,  even  though  he 
could  not  see  the  issue  clearly.     I  Ic  had  been  f^r  the 


84  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


first  time  swept  across  the  line  between  indifference  to 
truth  and  a  troubled  longing  for  it,  and  his  eyes  were 
open  toward  the  dawn.  Then,  after  what  must  have 
been  a  night  of  strange  and  unwonted  thought-expe- 
riences, he  set  pen  to  paper  and  told  his  mother  the 
story  she  had  longed  that  he  might  some  day  tell : 

My  Dear  Mother  : — You  are  doubtless  aware  that  there 
has  been  for  some  time  past  a  very  general  and  unusual  inter- 
est upon  the  subject  of  religion  in  this  city,  and  that,  for  nearly 
two  months  protracted  meetings  have  been  holden  in  the  dif- 
ferent churches  in  Hartford.  I,  however,  have,  from  the  con- 
finement of  my  business,  been  unable  to  attend  any  of  the 
numerous  religious  meetings,  and  I  have  only  known  of  the 
continued  progress  of  the  revival  by  the  laughter  and  ridicule 
of  "Father  Finney  and  his  theater"  continually  kept  up  by 
my  fellow  boarders. 

Thus  has  week  after  week  passed  away,  and  I  have  been 
not  only  beyond  the  influence  of  any  religious  excitement,  but 
I  have  listened  with  complacency  or  with  smiles  to  the  frequent 
profane  jestings  upon  the  subject  of  religion  and  revivals  until 
at  length  I  became  startled  at  the  fact  that  I  was  so  torpid  and 
unmoved.  .  .  . 

Thus  being  alarmed  because  I  was  not  alarmed  I  began 
to  think  upon  what  course  I  should  pursue,  to  arouse  myself  to 
feel  an  interest  in  this  important  subject;  but  I  fear  that  this 
feeling  v/ould  have  soon  passed  away,  had  I  not  yesterday 
have  received  two  letters  from  Stonington,  one  from  Frank 
Palmer,  announcing  the  commencement  of  a  revival  in  Mr. 
Clifts'  church,  and  the  other  from  Edmund  Stanton,  being  a 
long  letter  upon  the  subject  of  religion,  urging  me  by  every 
consideration  to  turn  my  attention  to  the  subject  of  religion. 

Had  a  letter  of  this  kind  reached  me  from  any  other 
source,  from  any  one  whom  I  should  expect  would  address  me 
on  such  a  subject,  this  letter  might  have  had  no  unusual  influ- 
ence, but  coming  from  Edmund  Stanton  who  never  before 
mentioned  the  subject  of  religion  to  me,  and  coming  at  just 


The  Spiritual  Awakening  85 


the  present  time,  it  has  caused  me  to  pause  in  my  present 
course,  and  induce  me  to  determine  that  I  will  endeavor  now 
to  give  my  attention  to  the  important  subject  of  my  eternal 
salvation. 

1  am  constantly  confined  to  my  business,  and  I  have  no 
time  to  converse  with  any  one  upon  this  subject,  but  I  am  now 
literally  asking  what  I  shall  do  to  be  saved. 

All  is  darkness  before  me.  I  know  not  what  I  should  do. 
I  endeavor  to  pray,  but  I  have  no  power  to  pray  aright.  I  can- 
not pray  for  what  I  want  to  pray.  I  feel  even  now  that  I  do 
not  feel  that  interest  in  the  subject  which  its  importance  de- 
mands. I  feel  that  I  do  not  feel  sufficiently  my  condition  and 
my  danger  and  my  need  of  a  Saviour. 

From  the  mother  came  in  answer  to  this  letter  just 
such  a  word  as  Sarah  Trumbull,  out  of  her  gentle 
heart,  would  write,  with  no  attempt  to  follow  the  tan- 
gled threads  of  Henry's  thought,  but  to  assure  her 
son  that  she  was  in  loving  sympathy  with  him : 

I  long  to  hear  from  you  again.  I  have  no  doubt  now  your 
mind  is  interested  in  the  subject  that  you  will  find  many  who 
love  the  Saviour,  and  will  rejoice  to  take  you  by  the  hand, 
and  will  point  out  to  you  the  way.  I  cannot  tell  you  how 
much  I  rejoice  that  your  mind  has  been  brought  again  to  that 
important  subject  with  so  much  interest. 

How  good  has  God  been  unto  us — unto  you,  my  child,  in 
that  while  you  were  separated  by  your  occupation  from  hear- 
ing much  preaching,  or  in  any  way  attending  upon  the  means 
of  grace,  your  Saviour  did  not  leave  you,  his  arm  of  mercy 
was  around  about  you,  his  eye  was  upon  you.  Although  you 
had  forgotten  him,  he  did  not  leave  or  forsake  you. 

Dear  Henry,  I  trust  I  feel  grateful  to  our  dear  Heavenly 
Father  for  his  great  goodness  in  awakening  (in  the  last  year) 
to  a  sense  of  their  sins  four  of  my  dear  children.  Notwith- 
standing my  undeservedness,  unfaithfulness,  to  these  dear 
children.  .  .  .  God  hath  done  great  things  for  us,  whereof 
we  are  glad.     "  Praised  be  his  name." 


86  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


And  from  his  father,  Gurdon  Trumbull,  came  a 
letter  full  of  sententious  advice,  with  the  not  easily 
expressed  heart-love  of  the  reticent  New  Englander 
plainly  discernible  between  the  lines : 

I  cannot  allow  to  pass  unnoticed  your  interesting  letter  to 
your  mother  which  was  received  yesterday.  Interesting  & 
auspicious,  as  it  indicated  a  purpose  to  attend  now  to  the  great 
enquiry,  a  solution  of  which  must  ultimately  affect  your  eternal 
welfare  as  it  will  as  certainly  influence  your  happiness  and 
usefulness  in  this  life.  I  need  not  tell  you  that  painful  as  were 
the  emotions  you  described,  they  were  an  occasion  of  grateful 
acknowledgment  in  our  family  circle.  .  .  . 

I  hope  you  will  avoid  all  metaphysical  inquiries  into  the 
philosophy  of  the  sinner's  redemption,  or  of  the  modus  oper- 
andi oi  the  Holy  Spirit,  remembering  the  promise  that  "if  ye 
shall  do  the  things  which  I  command  ye  shall  know  of  the 
doctrine." 

Dr.  Hawes  is  near  you,  and  his  whole  life  has  evidenced 
his  love  for  the  souls  of  men,  and  his  ability  and  willingness 
to  point  the  way  that  leads  to  heaven.  Confide  in  his  advice 
so  far  as  you  may  find  occasion  to  seek  counsel  from  humanity. 
Religion  is  a  matter  between  the  individual  and  his  God  and 
Saviour,  who  are  always  near,  always  ready,  always  willing 
to  hear  even  the  most  broken,  incoherent  petitions  of  the 
humble  and  contrite.  ...  I  can  only  add,  persevere  and  turn 
not  back,  whatever  trials  may  await  you. 

Because  Henry  Trumbull  suffered  keenly  at  this 
time,  because  he  came  to  solid  ground  over  quick- 
sand and  morass,  because  his  swiftly  analytical  mind 
was  providentially  directed  to  the  sane  shutting  out 
of  the  irrelevant  in  one's  religious  experiences,  he 
was  enabled  in  later  years  to  save  many  another  from 
the  retarding  mental  distress  which  had  clouded  his 
own  vision  of  the  Master.  Introspection  was  then  a 
characteristic  of  the  times,  and  the  self-analysis  which 


The  Spiritual  Awakenifig  87 


so  hampered  him  in  youth  was  an  exercise  that  be- 
came utterly  abhorrent  to  him  in  maturity.  It  was 
while  he  was  still  groping  in  the  fog,  determined,  and 
not  baffled,  that  the  sun  broke  through.  He  called 
upon  Dr.  Joel  Hawes,  pastor  of  the  First  Congrega- 
tional Church,  who,  in  addition  to  giving  him  words 
of  encouragement,  advised  him  to  attend  some  of  the 
derided  "  Father  Finney's  "  meetings. 

Charles  G.  Finney  was  precisely  the  man  who 
could  appeal  to  young  Trum.bull's  ready  responsive- 
ness to  the  unusual  and  unconventional.  Finney 
was  then  President  of  Oberlin  College.  He  belonged 
to  no  recognized  school  of  theology.  He  was  quite 
by  himself  in  his  methods  of  thought  and  work  in 
preaching  and  teaching.  Albert  Barnes,  the  leader  of 
the  New  School  Presbyterians  in  the  United  States, 
wrote  of  him :  "  Few  men  in  our  country  have  been 
as  well  fitted  to  act  on  the  higher  order  of  minds,  or 
to  bring  men,  proud  in  their  philosophy,  or  their  own 
righteousness,  to  the  foot  of  the  cross." 

When  Finney  began  his  meetings  in  Hartford,  he 
had  just  returned  from  a  visit  to  England,  where  he 
had  preached  for  a  time  in  the  Tabernacle  in  Fins- 
bury,  London,  working  with  Dr.  John  Campbell,  the 
successor  of  Whitefield.  Crowds  thronged  his  serv- 
ices there,  and  the  impression  he  made  was  profound. 
"Why,"  said  Dr.  Campbell,  "I  don't  understand  it. 
You  did  not  say  anything  but  what  anybody  else 
might  have  said  just  as  well." 

"Yes,"  replied  Finney,  "they  might  have  said  it, 
but  would  they  have  said  it  ?  " 

Finney  wrote  of  himself :  "  In  writing  and  speaking 


88 


He7i7y  Clay  Trumbull 


[as  a  lawyer],  I  had  sometimes  allowed  myself  to  use 
ornate  language.  But  when  I  came  to  preach  the 
Gospel,  my  mind  was  so  anxious  to  be  thoroughly 
understood  that  I  studied  in  the  most  earnest  manner 
on  the  one  hand  to  avoid  what  was  vulgar,  and  on 
the  other,  to  express  my  thoughts  with  the  greatest 
simplicity  of  language." 

He  was  unconventional,  not  only  in  his  language, 
but  in  his  ways  of  leading  men  to  Christ.  It  is  said 
that  when  he  was  on  his  way  home  from  the  scene 
of  a  fire  in  Oberlin  which  destroyed  a  grist-mill, 
he  accosted  a  young  man  with  "Good  evening, 
we've  had  quite  a  fire, — haven't  we  ?  Are  you  a 
Christian  ?  " 

This  was  the  man  under  whose  influence  Henry 
Trumbull  came  in  his  time  of  hesitancy.  He  at- 
tended one  of  Finney's  evening  meetings,  at  the  close 
of  which  he  went  to  a  young  men's  prayer-meeting 
held  a  little  after  nine  o'clock  in  a  room  over  the 
post-office,  for  the  benefit  of  clerks  and  others  who 
could  not  attend  at  an  earlier  hour.  On  that  night 
neither  Finney's  words  nor  the  text,  "  The  Spirit  and 
the  Bride  Say  Come,"  nor  the  prayer-meeting  testi- 
monies gave  him  peace  of  mind.  Of  his  troubled 
state  he  wrote  to  his  mother : 

I  wrote  to  you  a  few  days  since  that  I  had  determined  to 
seek  the  Saviour,  and  to  turn  my  entire  attention  to  the  eternal 
interests  of  my  soul. 

Thus  I  vainly  strove  to  pray.  I  besought  God  to  bring  me 
to  a  sense  of  my  lost  condition,  to  convince  me  of  my  need  of 
a  Saviour,  and  to  grant  me  faith  to  believe  in  his  willingness 
and  power  to  save  me.  But  I  apparently  prayed  in  vain.  The 
more  I  prayed,  the  more  fully  was  I  convinced  that  I  was  not 


The  Spiritual  Awake7iing  89 


to  be  saved,  that  because  I  had  frequently  grieved  the  Holy 
Spirit  and  quenched  its  strivings  within  me,  I  was  now  for- 
ever given  over  to  the  consequences  of  my  iniquity,  and,  like 
Dives  of  old,  I  was  to  enjoy  all  the  blessings  of  this  life  and  be 
refused  all  comforts  and  peace  in  eternity. 

Then  I  would  despair,  and  rise  from  my  knees  almost  in 
anger,  thinking  that  I  had  done  all  /  could  do,  and  that  no 
blame  could  be  attached  to  me  if  I  were  refused  spiritual  aid 
and  comfort  Again,  I  would  endeavor  to  humble  myself  in 
the  sight  of  God,  and  acknowledge  my  inability  to  do  aught  for 
my  own  salvation  and  urge  his  counsel  and  assistance  to  be 
granted  to  me  in  my  distress.  .  .  . 

On  Tuesday  afternoon  I  went  to  see  Dr.  Hawes,  and  stated 
my  case  to  him  and  asked  his  counsel  and  advice.  He  talked 
to  me  kindly  and  plainly,  and  advised  me  to  apply  to  God 
as  the  only  source  of  light  and  knowledge  as  to  what  I 
should  do.  He  wished  me  to  attend  Mr.  Finney's  meetings 
holden  every  evening  in  some  one  of  the  Congregational 
churches,  and  also  the  inquiry  meetings  which  follow  every 
evening  service. 

The  same  evening  I  was  enabled  to  leave  the  office  and 
attend  Mr.  Finney's  meeting  where  I  heard  a  most  excellent 
sermon  from  the  words,  "The  Spirit  and  the  Bride  say  come, 
&c."  At  the  meeting  I  met  Kate  Goodrich's  brother  Samuel 
who  after  church  asked  me  to  go  with  him  to  a  young  men's 
prayer  meeting,  which  is  holden  every  evening  in  a  room  over 
the  Post  Office,  commencing  at  the  close  of  Mr.  Finney's 
services. 

I  attended  the  meeting  and  heard  some  speak  who  de- 
scribed exactly  my  state  of  mind,  but  still  I  could  not  be 
comforted.  I  read  some  tracts  which  Dr.  Hawes  gave  to  me, 
but  they  only  seemed  to  narrow  the  path  that  leads  to  salva- 
tion. I  still  sought  refuge  in  prayer,  but  with  no  better  suc- 
cess than  at  first.  I  began  to  think  that  the  Spirit  of  God  was 
not  striving  with  me,  nor  would  come  nigh  me,  and  I  felt  that 
I  did  not  have  a  proper  conviction  of  my  sin,  and  of  my  utter 
helplessness,  and  could  not  therefore  seek  assistance  of  God 
aright. 


90  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


But  he  was  not  to  be  left  in  this  maze  of  uncertainty 
and  spiritual  unrest,  for  he  continues : 

Last  evening  I  was  again  released  from  the  office  early  in 
the  evening,  and  again  went  to  hear  Mr.  Finney.  He 
preached  from  the  text,  "I  pray  thee,  have  me  excused." 
Mr.  Finney  is  by  no  means  an  exciting  preacher.  He  makes 
no  appeals  to  the  feelings,  no  appeals  to  our  fears.  He  pre- 
sents a  subject  calmly  and  rationally,  and  treats  it  logically  ; 
he  appeals  to  the  reason  and  understanding  rather  than  to  the 
passions  and  feehngs. 

He,  last  evening,  spoke  of  the  different  excuses  that  were 
offered  for  not  accepting  the  invitations  to  the  marriage  supper 
of  the  Lamb.  Amongst  others  he  mentioned  every  excuse  that 
/  had  offered  to  myself,  and  showed  their  folly.  He  said, 
"you  say  that  you  have  not  sufficient  feeling  on  the  subject. 
What  good  would  it  do  you  if  you  had  all  the  feeling  that  a 
condemned  sinner  has  in  perdition  ?  Feeling  does  not  save  him, 
neither  will  it  save  you.  You  say  that  you  do  not  see  your 
sins  in  their  true  light,  and  do  not  sufficiently  feel  your  un- 
worthiness.  Does  not  your  reason  prove  to  you,  as  well  as 
your  conscience,  that  you  are  a  sinner  ;  and  if  so,  is  not  that 
sufficient  to  lead  you  to  seek  forgiveness  ? ' ' 

This  appeal  from  one  who  described  my  feelings  so  ex- 
actly, and  who  evidently  understood  my  difficulties  and  my 
doubts,  apparently  opened  my  eyes  and  gave  me  a  glimpse  of 
the  truth,  and  of  my  duty  ;  and  as  I  offered  up  a  mental 
prayer  that  Christ  would  accept  of  my  offer  of  my  life  and 
strength  to  be  devoted  to  his  service  and  glory,  it  did  seem 
as  if  I  had  found  the  true  entrance  to  eternal  life. 

Dr.  Hawes  told  me  this  afternoon  that  the  appearance  of 
truth  in  the  heart  was  like  the  first  sprouting  of  some  seeds 
that  had  been  planted  ;  at  its  first  appearance  it  was  almost 
impossible  to  tell  whether  it  were  flowers  or  weeds,  but  it  would 
be  folly  to  pluck  up  every  green  sprout  that  showed  itself  for 
fear  that  it  were  a  weed.  "Let  it  grow,"  he  said  ;  "cherish  it, 
and  cultivate  it,  and  when  it  has  shown  its  quality,  separate 
the  weed  from  the  plant,  for  then  you  may  do  it  safely." 


The  Spiritual  Awakening 


91 


Then,  with  the  evangehstic  spirit  breaking  down 
the  barriers  of  doubt  within  him,  he  gives  naive  ex- 
pression to  the  reahty  of  the  new  Hfe  that  was  in  him, 
as  he  exclaims : 

Oh,  how  I  trust  and  hope  that  the  revival  may  continue  its 
good  work  in  Stonington,  and  that  Tommy,  [a  younger 
brother],  as  well  as  many  others  may  be  brought  to  Christ ! 

In  his  sketch  of  Finney,  in  his  book  "  My  Four 
Religious  Teachers,"  Dr.  Trumbull  thus  described 
more  than  fifty  years  after  the  event,  the  effect  Fin- 
ney's preaching  had  upon  him  in  that  crisis  time  of 
his  youth. 

I  never  heard  such  sermons  as  those,  before  or  since. 
There  was  something  in  them  of  Henry  F.  Durant's 
lawyer-like  directness  of  appeal  to  the  hearer's  con- 
science and  best  consciousness,  with  something  of 
Dwight  L.  Moody's  unconventional  and  unmistakable 
application  of  the  truth  to  the  individual's  heart 
and  sound  sense.  Yet  Finney  was  like  neither 
Durant  nor  Moody;  he  was  Finney  and  was  like 
Finney,  and  like  no  other  man.  There  was  no 
getting  away  from  him,  nor  thinking  of  anything  else 
while  he  preached.  There  were  no  appeals  to  mere 
feeling;  the  feelings,  if  moved,  were  moved  by  and 
through  the  conscience  and  reason,  and  as  an  inevit- 
able result  of  the  simple  truth  pressed  by  itself 

"  I  have  always  been  grateful  that  my  first  religious 
teaching  when  I  had  entered  Christ's  service  was  from 
a  teacher  who  uttered  God's  truth  positively,  but  in 
such  a  way  that  neither  he  nor  I  could  be  counted 
of  any  recognized  school  of  denominational  theology. 
And  I  have  never  since  been  obliged  to  count  myself 


92 


He7zry  Clay  Trumbull 


of  any  one  denomination  in  strict  and  conventional 
theological  views." 

Whatever  else  Finney  may  have  given  to  Henry 
Clay  Trumbull,  he  taught  him  a  fact  which  Trumbull 
never  allowed  himself  to  overlook  in  his  efforts  to 
help  others — the  worthlessness  of  feeling  as  a  guide 
in  one's  turning  to  Christ.  In  his  conversations  and 
in  his  writings  about  duty-doing,  Trumbull  steadily 
refused  to  recognize  feeling  as  rightfully  a  controlling 
factor.  To  turn  to  Christ  was  a  duty,  whether  a  man 
felt  like  it  or  not.  "  FeeUng  right  is  your  duty ;  but 
acting  right  is  also  your  duty,"  wrote  Dr.  Trumbull 
in  1903.  "  In  the  long  run  you  are  more  likely  to 
feel  right  by  doing  right,  whether  you  like  it  or  not, 
than  by  neglecting  your  known  duty  until  you  may 
feel  like  doing  it." 

On  March  14  his  mother  wrote  lovingly  and 
gratefully  to  Henry,  in  the  light  of  his  latest 
communications: 

Your  letters  have,  all  of  them,  been  mterisely  interesting 
to  us.  They  have  been  read  until  they  are  nearly  worn  out 
.  .  .  Your  father  reads  them  over  and  over,  and  never  with  dry 
eyes.  After  your  second  letter  in  which  you  told  us  you  had 
found  Christian  friends,  we  felt  at  ease  about  you. 

Then  follows  a  hint  of  the  spirit  in  which  Henry 
Trumbull,  like  Andrew  of  old,  had  entered  into  the 
new  life  in  Christ,  for  his  mother  adds : 

Your  letter  to  Tommy  was  a  very  seasonable  one.  It  was 
just  what  he  needed.  He  has  been  quite  in  the  dark  lately 
and  thought  he  never  had  repentance  or  faith,  but  he  now 
seems  on  his  feet  again.    You  may  well  suppose  there  has 

been  a  great  change  in  him  He  offered  himself  as  a 

teacher  in  the  Sabbath-school,  but  as  there  was  no  class  for 


The  Spiritual  Awakening  93 


him  now,  he  today  took  little  Gurdon  and  taught  him,  and 
seemed  very  anxious  to  do  him  good,  and  to  teach  him  to  keep 
the  Sabbath. 

But  the  very  thought  that  his  brother,  so  young  in 
the  Christian  life,  should  attempt  to  teach  a  Sunday- 
school  class,  aroused  Henry  to  an  expression  of  con- 
cern which  gives  Hght  upon  his  exalted  idea  of  the 
new  opportunities  and  obligations  disclosed  by  his 
and  his  brother's  resolves.    To  his  mother  he  wrote: 

You  mentioned  in  your  letter  that  Tommy  had  volunteered 
his  services  as  a  teacher  in  the  Sabbath-school.  Now  I  have 
no  desire  to  dictate  to  him  as  to  his  course,  nor  do  I  know  how 
the  Sabbath-school  at  Stonington  is  at  present  situated  as 
regards  teachers  suitable  to  instruct  him  or  scholars  of  his 
age,  but  it  does  seem  to  me  that  he  could  get  more  good 
from  being  under  the  instruction  of  a  teacher  who  was  one 
hour  older  than  himself  in  the  Christian  life,  than  he  could  by 
teaching  others,  or  in  any  other  way. 

To  show  to  Tommy  that  I  feel  the  truth  of  what  I  say  and 
that  my  remarks  are  not  prompted  by  an  underestimate  of  his 
abilities  I  will  merely  state  that  feeling  my  own  ignorance  of 
spiritual  things  and  of  the  duties  of  a  Christian  I  myself  com- 
menced attending  Sabbath-school  as  a  scholar  at  the  Center 
Church  last  Sabbath  morning.  I  believe  that  I  am  the  oldest 
or  one  of  the  oldest  scholars  in  the  school  but  I  felt  that  I 
was  a  babe  in  grace,  and  thai  I  should  desire  the  sincere  milk 
of  the  word,  that  I  might  grow  thereby,  and  I  therefore  asked 
admission  into  the  school  as  a  scholar,  to  learn  the  same  lesson 
each  Sabbath  as  that  learned  by  the  children  eight  years  old. 

My  teacher  is  the  venerable  Judge  [Thomas  S.]  Williams 
(ex-Chief  Justice  of  our  State),  and  a  most  excellent  teacher  he 
is,  too  ;  and  I  hope  that  I  shall  receive  great  benefit  from  his 
instructions.  Tommy  will,  of  course,  do  what  he  thinks  best 
under  the  circumstances,  and  will  I  trust  be  guided  in  this 
matter  by  the  advice  of  yourself  and  father.  But  I  hope  that 
he  will  not  think  that  his  being  or  considering  himself  a  Chris- 


94 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


tian  leaves  him  nothing  to  learti  of  the  Bible,  or  its  truths,  and 
that  no  pride  will  prevent  his  seeking  instruction  wherever  it 
is  to  be  found. 

As  I  sat  in  my  Sabbath-school  class  today  some  one  remarked 
that  what  was  not  often  the  case,  our  e7itire  class  were  hoping 
that  they  had  ivithin  a  few  weeks  all  passed  from  death  unto 
life.  But  although  this  was  the  case  none  of  us  thought  of 
being  too  old  to  study  God' s  Word  in  that  hallowed  place. 

And  then  Henry  goes  on  to  recount  some  of  his 
own  reflections  and  experiences,  and  to  quote  a  word 
of  advice  from  Dr.  Bushnell,  whose  views  and  ways 
of  stating  truth  were  already  finding  a  response  in  his 
awakening  spiritual  nature  : — 

It  was  with  unfeigned  delight  that  I  again  found  myself  on 
Friday  night  in  the  evening  prayer  circle  over  the  Post  Office 
and  again  had  the  opportunity  of  calling  upon  God  from  my 
accustomed  place  of  prayer.  It  is  with  anew  light  that  I  now 
view  everything  in  this  city,  and  I  feel  more  attached  to  it  than 
ever  before.  .  .  . 

I  have  today  attended  five  services  and  that  has  left  me 
but  little  time  for  reading,  except  my  accustomed  amount  of 
reading  in  the  Bible,  and  I  had  some  doubts  as  to  whether  it 
was  proper  for  me  to  write  this  evening,  but  as  I  have  no  other 
time  for  writing  home,  and  I  do  not  intend  to  write  upon  sec- 
ular subjects  I  hope  that  I  am  not  doing  wrong. 

...  A  single  remark  by  Dr.  Bushnell  at  one  of  the  in- 
quiry meetings  was  so  good  and  appropriate  to  my  present 
state  of  mind  that  I  will  tell  it  for  Tommy's  benefit.  He  said 
to  the  young  converts  :  "You  are  doubting  about  your  hope  and 
are  uncertain  whether  that  will  sustain  you  at  all  times  and  in 
all  trials.  If  you  have  any  fears  as  to  the  strength  of  your 
hope  as  to  whether  it  is  sufficient  to  bear  you  up,  fall  right 
through  your  hope,  sink  right  down  through  it,  into  the  arms 
of  Christ  your  Saviour.  Loose  all  hold  upon  your  hopes,  place 
no  dependence  upon  that,  but  sink  right  into  the  arms  of 
Jesus,  and  he  will  sustain  and  uphold  you.' 


The  Spiritual  Awakenir.g  95 


Meanwhile  Henry  was  preparing  to  unite  with  the 
church  of  his  own  and  his  father's  choice,  the  old 
First  (or  Center)  Church  in  Hartford.  This  church 
installed  Thomas  Hooker  as  its  first  pastor,  at  its 
organization  in  Newtown  (now  Cambridge),  Massa- 
chusetts, on  October  11,  1633.  But  in  June,  1636, 
Thomas  Hooker,  the  pastor,  and  Samuel  Stone,  who 
had  been  installed  at  the  same  time  with  Hooker  as 
teacher,  removed  with  some  one  hundred  of  the  con- 
gregation to  Hartford,  and  established  there  not  only 
the  first  church  in  that  place,  but  the  first  church  in 
Connecticut.  In  the  one  hundred  and  eight}^-five 
years  from  the  ordination  of  Thomas  Hooker  to  the 
ordination  of  Joel  Hawes,  the  church  had  had  but 
ten  pastors,  each  one  of  them  dying  in  office. 

Dr.  Hawes  was  a  man  of  mark  in  his  community 
and  far  beyond  it.  His  father  was  a  Massachusetts 
blacksmith  and  farmer,  and  the  boy  grew  up  among 
rough  companions,  and  with  no  early  education  in 
higher  things.  At  eighteen  he  was  unacquainted 
with  the  Bible,  but  through  his  reading  of  a  copy, 
secured  about  that  time,  his  course  of  life  was 
changed.  In  1839,  he  was  the  first  choice  of  Yale 
College  for  the  then  vacant  chair  of  pastoral  theol- 
ogy, but  the  faculty  did  not  think  it  advisable  to  take 
him  away  from  his  Hartford  work.  In  1846,  he  was 
made  a  member  of  the  corporation  of  Yale  College, 
and  so  continued  to  his  death  in  1867. 

Dr.  Hawes  was  tall  in  stature  and  commanding  in 
appearance,  a  man  of  strong  and  quick  sensibilities, 
having  no  patience  with  sensational  preaching  or 
eccentric  church  methods.    He  was  a  warm  friend  of 


96 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


revivals,  and  especially  strong  in  his  work  among 
young  men.  His  Lectures  to  Young  Men,"  deliv- 
ered in  Hartford  in  1827,  and  later  at  Yale,  were 
published,  and  attained  a  circulation  of  more  than  a 
hundred  thousand  copies  in  America,  and  even  more 
in  Great  Britain. 

Many  are  the  stories  about  Dr.  Hawes  that  crowd 
the  memories  of  those  who  knew  him  well.  He  was 
distinctly  a  character,  owning  no  man  as  his  master. 
Mr.  Trumbull  used  to  describe,  with  keen  relish,  the 
nervousness  of  the  good  old  Doctor  when  young  men 
were  speaking  in  any  of  the  church  services.  At  a 
monthly  concert  service  on  missions.  Dr.  Hawes  said : 
"  I  understand  that  the  young  men  have  arranged  to 
report  from  different  missionary  fields  to-night.  They 
have  not  informed  me  of  their  plans,  but  will  they  go 
on  ?  Who  comes  first  ?  "  Then  as  one  after  another 
finished  his  report,  the  Doctor  became  more  perturbed. 
When  Mr.  Trumbull  rose  to  report  for  the  Sandwich 
Islands,  the  Doctor  could  stand  it  no  longer.  "  Stop, 
Trumbull,  stop  !  "  he  cried.  "  Judge  Williams,  as 
soon  as  Mr.  Trumbull  is  through,  won't  you  speak  or 
lead  in  prayer  ?  A  few  words  of  age  and  experience 
would  do  us  good  to-night.    Now  go  on,  Trumbull!" 

This  was  not  altogether  encouraging  to  a  beginner 
in  the  difficult  art  of  "  speaking  in  meeting,"  but  it 
must  not  be  supposed  that  Dr.  Hawes  repressed  his 
young  men  habitually.  Out  of  the  First  Church, 
during  his  pastorate,  came  thirty-seven  candidates  for 
the  ministry,  seven  of  whom  went  to  the  foreign  field, 
besides  nearly  thirty  lay  workers  in  the  mission  field 
at  home  and  abroad. 


The  Spiritual  Awakening  97 


Henry  Trumbull  had  attended  the  services  of  this 
historic  church  in  company  with  his  employer,  Mr. 
James  M.  Bunce.  He  found  encouragement  in  the 
companionship  of  Christians  old  and  young,  and  he 
was  deeply  grateful  for  the  influences  set  about  him. 
When  he  had  made  up  his  mind  that  he  ought  to 
make  a  public  profession  of  his  faith  in  Christ,  he 
was  eager  to  have  his  parents  in  Hartford  on  the 
Sunday  when  he  should  take  that  step.  On  Tues- 
day, May  27,  he  wrote  earnestly  to  his  mother: 

Last  Sabbath  46  persons  were  propounded  for  admission 
to  Dr.  Havves'  church  on  the  first  Sabbath  in  June,  and  several 
others  were  propounded  for  admission  by  letter.  It  will  be  a 
solemn  time  for  us  who  are  to  act  so  prominent  a  part  in  that 
scene,  in  the  presence  not  only  of  those  on  earth  who  see  us 
take  this  step,  but  also  of  God  our  Father  and  His  Son  our 
Saviour,  and  of  all  the  angels  of  the  Most  High,  with  the 
countless  host  of  the  redeemed  and  happy  saints. 

I  wish  that  you  and  father  would  come  up  here  at  that 
time  and  be  with  me  on  that  day.  Why  can  you  not?  You 
and  father  would  both  go  to  Williamstown  to  see  Charlie  grad- 
uate from  his  college,  and  to  hear  him  pronounce  the  Valedic- 
tory, and  now  why  will  you  not  come  and  see  me  close  my 
connection  with  the  world,  the  flesh  and  sin  ?  Why  not  come 
and  hear  me  pronounce  a  Valedictory  to  all  things  that  would 
separate  me  from  Heaven  and  from  God  ? 

Henry's  joy  in  his  new  life  impressed  his  parents 
strongly.  They  had  known  his  absorption  in  the 
social  affairs  of  Stonington,  in  the  lighter  side  of 
neighborhood  doings.  They  had  known  the  buoy- 
ancy and  elasticity  of  his  many-sided  temperament, 
and  now  they  were  rejoiced  that  he  should  enter 
into  his  Christian  experience  with  no  diminishing 
of  these  qualities  and  with  a  glad  heart  and  high- 


98 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


minded  good  cheer.  Early  in  June  he  wrote  to 
one  of  the  family: 

You  speak  of  my  religion  as  being  of  a  cheerful  nature,  but 
it  seems  to  me  that  reUgion  can  only  make  a7iy  person  cheer- 
ful and  happy.  No  matter  how  dispositions  may  differ,  or 
what  variety  there  may  be  in  temperament  and  feeling,  religion 
must  make  all  contented  and  cheerful  and  it  is  only  when  we 
forget  our  rehgion,  or  doubt  the  precious  promises  of  our  kind 
Father  in  heaven  that  the  present  or  the  future  can  look  to  us 
other  than  bright  and  pleasant.  The  contemplation  of  what 
is  ours  and  of  all  that  is  in  store  for  us  can  only  cause  our 
hearts  to  swell  with  gratitude  to  the  God  who  has  done  & 
promised  so  much  for  us  and  not  unless  we  forget  these  things 
shall  we  ever  doubt  or  be  sad. 

It  seems  to  me  that  if  all  only  understood  what  it  is  to  be  a 
Christian  and  how  pleasant  it  is  in  this  life  (even  were  there 
no  future  hope)  there  would  be  no  unbelievers,  none  impeni- 
tent or  unforgiven. 

And  the  life  in  Christ  was  conferring  upon  him 
immediate  blessings,  which  touched  him  deeply, 
warming  his  responsive  nature  into  a  lively  sense 
of  gratitude.  As  the  time  drew  near  for  him  to 
take  his  stand  before  the  world  for  the  Master  whom 
he  loved,  he  was  laid  aside  a  few  days  with  a  sudden 
though  not  serious  illness,  and  was  confined  to  his 
room.    Of  this  incident  he  wrote  to  his  father: 

It  seems  that  all  Hartford  is  aware  of  my  sickness,  and  I 
have  been  delighted  to  see  so  many  friends  as  have  called  to 
inquire  after  my  health  ;  and  T  have  reason  to  be  very,  very 
grateful  to  my  Heavenly  Father,  not  only  for  restoring  me  to 
health,  but  for  making  my  sickness  so  pleasant  to  me,  and  for 
bringing  to  my  bedside  so  many  kind  and  sympathizing  friends, 
and  for  making  my  path  in  life  so  pleasant  and  so  easy. 

Each  day  do  I  have  renewed  cause  for  gratitude  to  him 
for  giving  me  some  new  inducement  to  a  life  of  holiness,  and 


The  Spiritual  Awakenhig  99 


for  holding  out  to  me  some  fresh  incentive  to  continuing  in  the 
narrow  path  that  leads  to  life,  and  to  pressing  forward  yet 
more  earnestly  to  obtain  the  prize  of  my  high  calling  in  Christ 
Jesus. 

Thus,  as  you  will  readily  believe,  it  was  only  Christian 
friends  that  came  to  my  bedside,  it  was  to  them  I  was  in- 
debted for  kindness  and  sympathy,  and  I  had  the  pleasure  of 
knowing  that  more  than  one  heart  was  lifted  up  to  God  in 
prayer  for  my  recovery.  Oh,  where  are  the  crosses  I  was  told 
I  must  expect  in  my  endeavors  to  serve  God  ?  Where  is  the 
yoke  and  the  burden  I  was  told  I  would  be  obliged  to  bear  ? 

From  the  moment  I  first  determined  to  give  my  heart 
to  God,  every  step  that  I  have  taken  in  the  path  of  duty 
and  of  right  has  been  a  step  in  the  path  of  pleasure,  and  oh, 
if  all  the  wandering  prodigal  children  knew  of  the  delights 
they  would  experience  in  their  journey  homeward,  in  company 
with  their  loving,  merciful,  tho'  long  neglected  Father  (who 
will  gladly  meet  them  "while  yet  afar  off"  from  their  home 
and  final  resting-place),  how  few  would  longer  suffer  in  the 
service  of  a  hard  and  cruel  master  vainly  endeavoring  to  satisfy 
the  cravings  of  an  immortal  spirit  with  the  husks  and  the 
scanty  nourishment  which  this  world  of  sin  affords. 

Henry  united  with  the  First  Church  on  the  first 
Sunday  in  June,  1852,  but  even  before  this  he  had 
begun  his  Hfe-time  service  of  winning  individuals, 
one  by  one,  to  Christ. 

In  the  same  house  with  him  was  a  fellow-boarder 
who  was  also  an  associate  of  his  in  the  chief  en- 
gineer's ofifice  of  the  railroad.  Walking  one  day 
from  the  house  to  the  office,  Henry  told  his  friend  of 
his  decision  for  Christ,  and  urged  him  to  accept  the 
Saviour.  That  friend's  response  was  typical  of  the 
answer  that  may  often  surprise  the  messenger  of 
Christ  who  seeks  to  reach  those  near  at  hand  in  the 
home  or  business  circle. 


lOO  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


"Trumbull,"  said  he,  "your  words  cut  me  to  the 
heart.  You  little  think  how  they  rebuke  me.  I've 
long  been  a  professed  follower  of  Christ;  and  you 
have  never  suspected  this,  although  we've  been  in 
close  association  in  house  and  office.  May  God  for- 
give me  for  my  lack  of  faithfulness ! " 

Then  it  was  that  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  made  a 
resolve  that  he  never  abandoned.  "  I  determined," 
he  declares,  "that  as  I  loved  Christ,  and  as  Christ 
loved  souls,  I  would  press  Christ  on  the  individual 
soul,  so  that  none  who  were  in  the  proper  sphere  of 
my  individual  responsibility  or  influence  should  lack 
the  opportunity  of  meeting  the  question  whether  or 
not  they  would  individually  trust  and  follow  Christ. 
The  resolve  I  made  was,  that  whenever  I  was  in  such 
intimacy  with  a  soul  as  to  be  justified  in  choosing  my 
subject  of  conversation,  the  theme  of  themes  should 
have  prominence  between  us,  so  that  I  might  learn 
his  need,  and,  if  possible,  meet  it." 


LIGHTS  AND  SHADOWS  OF  AN  OLD-TIME 
MISSION  SCHOOL 


The  Sunday-school  membership  of  no  church 
is  in  any  sense  complete,  unless  it  includes  the 
children  and  youth  of  the  outside  neighborhoods 
which  are  of  its  proper  field  of  labor, — that  is,  of 
the  entire  field  which  can  easier  be  reached  by 
it  than  by  any  other  church  ;  even, though  from 
two  to  ten  branch  Sunday-schools  have  to  be 
started  in  order  to  secure  this  additional  mem- 
bership. And  only  by  some  such  method  of 
home  evangelism  as  this,  can  our  American  com- 
munities be  brought  under  and  held  by  the 
training  influence  of  the  Church  of  Christ.  It  is 
within  bounds  to  say,  that  there  are  at  least  two 
or  three  millions  of  children  and  youth  now  out- 
side of  the  Sunday-school,  who  could  be  added 
to  its  membership  within  the  current  year  by 
systematic  and  persistent  efforts  in  their  behalf, 
by  the  churches  of  America  already  professing 
an  interest  in  Sunday-school  work.  And  obvi- 
ously there  would  be  a  better  prospect  of  bring- 
ing into  the  church  fold  the  parents  of  these 
children  through  their  children's  winsom.e  lead- 
ing, than  of  reaching  the  parents  in  such  out-of- 
the-way  places  without  the  help  of  their  children' s 
potent  influence. —  Yale  Lectures  on  the  Sunday- 
School. 


CHAPTER  VII 


LIGHTS  AND  SHADOWS  OF  AN  OLD-TIME 
MISSION  SCHOOL 

Within  a  few  weeks  after  his  decision  for  Christ, 
and  several  months  before  he  became  a  member  of 
the  First  Church,  Mr.  Trumbull  found  himself  called 
to  a  work  which  was  to  have  much  to  do  with 
shaping  his  life-course  and  life-interests. 

Shortly  after  he  began  his  business  life  in  Hartford, 
The  Young  Men's  City  Mission  Society  was  organized 
by  members  of  the  Congregational  churches  of  the 
city,  "  for  the  better  promotion  of  the  benevolent  efforts 
in  the  city,"  according  to  its  prospectus  of  Novem- 
ber I,  185 1.  Its  organization  was  due  to  sugges- 
tions made  by  the  Rev.  Thomas  H.  Gallaudet.  Its 
purposes  included  the  support  of  a  city  missionary, 
the  establishing  of  Sunday-schools,  and  meetings  for 
prayer  or  religious  services  in  various  parts  of  the 
city  where  such  special  labors  seem  to  be  required. 

The  prospectus  announced  the  fact  that  Mr.  David 
Hawley,  who  had  been  at  work  among  the  destitute 
*'  during  the  past  month,"  had  been  engaged  as  City 
Missionary.  This  prospectus  and  the  new  organiza- 
tion were  endorsed  by  the  pastors  of  the  Center, 
South,  North,  and  Fourth  Churches, — Joel  Hawes, 
Horace  Bushnell,  Walter  Clarke,  and  W.  G.  Patton. 

103 


I04  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


On  March  21,  1852,  under  the  auspices  of  the  So- 
ciety, a  mission  Sunday-school  was  opened  in  one 
of  the  roughest  quarters  of  the  city.  It  was  held  in  a 
third-story  room  at  the  corner  of  Morgan  and  Front 
Streets,  on  the  banks  of  the  Connecticut  River,  in  the 
heart  of  a  tenement  neighborhood,  where  laborers  and 
river  hands  and  factory  workmen,  of  varied  nationality 
and  of  many  forms  of  religion  and  irreligion,  swarmed 
in  shanty  and  hovel  and  courtyard.  Rodney  Dennis, 
afterwards  President  of  the  Connecticut  Humane  So- 
ciety, was  the  first  superintendent,  and  he  with  nine 
others  constituted  the  working  force.  And  force  was 
needed,  both  spiritual  and  physical.  On  his  fourth 
Sunday  Mr.  Dennis  resigned,  being  about  to  leave  the 
city.  On  the  second  Sunday  of  the  school's  life,  an 
invitation  was  extended  to  members  of  Judge  Thomas 
S.  Williams'  class  of  young  men  in  the  old  Center 
Church  to  help  in  the  Morgan  Street  Mission.  In 
response  to  this  call  Henry  Clay  Trumbull,  Julius  G. 
Rathbun,  Edward  M.  Gallaudet,  a  son  of  the  Rev. 
Thomas  H.  Gallaudet,  with  three  or  four  other  young 
men,  reported  for  duty  at  the  mission. 

At  Mr.  Dennis'  request,  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  was 
almost  immediately  elected  to  the  office  of  superin- 
tendent, taking  up  that  work  on  April  18,  with  Miss 
Antoinette  Phelps  and  Alfred  W.  Gleason  as  his  assist- 
ants, and  Mr.  Gallaudet  as  clerk  and  librarian.  At 
that  time  the  school  had  fifteen  teachers  and  forty- 
one  scholars, — twenty-four  boys  and  seventeen  girls. 

Because  the  Morgan  Street  School  was  a  typical 
mission  school,  and  because  in  it  Henry  Clay  Trum- 
bull gained   his  earliest  lessons  in  Sunday-school 


All  Old  Time  Mission  School 


work  as  a  servant  of  Christ,  it  is  well  to  see  that 
school  as  it  was,  and  its  superintendent  as  he  was. 

Such  schools  were  then  comparatively  new  in 
America,  Through  the  organization  of  the  Five 
Points  Mission,  in  New  York,  in  1849,  ^.n  impulse 
was  given  to  mission-school  work  in  this  country, 
and  the  Morgan  Street  school  in  Hartford  was  one 
of  the  earliest  and  one  of  the  most  difficult  of  its 
kind.  Skilled  mission  speakers  who  visited  it  admitted 
frankly  that  nothing  in  their  experience  as  mission- 
workers  had  ever  equaled  the  crowd  that  faced  them 
there,  and  sometimes  routed  them  with  nonsense  and 
ridicule  and  shrewd  personalities. 

On  one  occasion,  as  described  by  Mrs.  Alice  Good- 
win (one  of  the  first  and  most  efficient  teachers  in  the 
school),  Charles  P.  Brace,  of  the  Five  Points  Mission, 
visited  Morgan  Street.  He  was  accustomed  to  a 
rough  crowd  at  home,  and  therefore,  says  Mrs.  Good- 
win, "  rose  with  much  assurance  to  address  our  boys 
and  girls. 

"  *  Boys,'  he  said,  '  I  am  going  to  tell  you  two 
stories;  one  is  true  and  the  other  is  not.'  Where- 
upon a  boy  called  out,  '  You  needn't  come  here  with 
any  of  your  lies  ! '  For  a  moment  Mr.  Brace  seemed 
quite  disconcerted,  but  soon  recovered,  and  when  he 
went  away  the  boys  were  loud  in  their  shouts  of 
*  Come  again,  John  !  *  Mr.  Brace  afterwards  told  Mr. 
Trumbull  that  in  all  his  New  York  experience  he  had 
never  been  taken  so  aback  as  at  our  school." 

When  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  made  his  way  up  the 
rickety  stairs  and  through  the  dim  passageways  into 
this  school  for  the  first  time,  he  was  accompanied 


io6  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


from  the  street  door  by  a  man  who  was  to  become 
his  chief  teacher  in  hand-to-hand  Christian  work. 
That  man  was  David  Hawley,  the  city  missionary. 
Mr.  Hawley  had  not  been  in  the  school  on  the  day 
of  its  organizing,  and  he  too  was  now  entering  for 
the  first  time  the  turbulent  room  where  he  and  his 
young  companion  in  service  were  to  be  so  much  to 
each  other  and  to  the  work  among  the  wild  young- 
sters of  the  river  settlement. 

''Father"  Hawley,  as  he  was  lovingly  called,  was 
a  thoroughly  sensible,  keen-witted,  and  tactful  Chris- 
tian worker,  of  self-effacing  spirit  and  rare  attractive- 
ness. He  was  of  fine  New  England  stock.  His 
brother  was  the  father  of  the  late  Joseph  R.  Hawley, 
distinguished  as  General  Hawley  in  the  Civil  War,  as 
Governor  of  the  state  in  1866,  and  from  1881  to  1904 
United  States  Senator  from  Connecticut. 

David  Hawley  was  one  of  the  four  men  to  whom 
Dr.  Trumbull  looked  up  as  his  principal  religious 
teachers.  No  others  outside  his  family  circle  were 
counted  by  him  as  comparable  with  these  in  their 
direct  influence  upon  his  early  life,  and  upon  his 
views  of  life  and  truth.  Charles  G.  Finney  had 
taught  him  that  feeling  was  no^  measure  or  test  of 
one's  yielding  to  Christ,  and  Finney  had  illustrated 
in  his  bearing  and  words  the  reasonableness  and  good 
sense  of  the  Christian  experience  as  the  supreme  ex- 
perience in  life.  Elias  R.  Beadle  and  Horace  Bush- 
nell  were  yet  to  make  their  impress  upon  him.  David 
Hawley  personified  the  outreaching,  uplifting  spirit 
of  brotherly  love  and  encouragement,  and  this  spirit 
Henry  Clay  Trumbull  was  not  slow  to  perceive.  It 


An  Old  Time  Mission  School  107 


found  a  response  in  his  own  inner  nature,  free-handed 
and  generous  as  that  was,  and  now  touched  with  a 
love  for  Him  who  knew  no  other  work  than  the  out- 
pouring of  himself  for  others. 

But  notwithstanding  his  fervent  zeal,  Mr.  Trumbull 
went  to  the  Morgan  Street  Mission  with  misgivings. 
Could  Sunday-school  work  be  of  any  service  to  such 
a  crowd  of  incorrigibles  as  he  had  heard  were  to  be 
found  there  ?  He  considered  such  efforts  hopeless 
and  misdirected,  though  he  was  willing  to  examine 
the  conditions  fairly.  And  as  he  stood  near  the 
dilapidated  three-story  brick  building  in  which  the 
school  was  gathered, — a  building  surrounded  by  tav- 
erns, grog-shops,  pawnbrokers'  dens,  and  wretched 
hovels,  and  including  in  its  ground-floor  a  meat- 
market,  a  clothing  repair  shop,  and  a  coffee-roasting 
establishment, — he  was  amazed  and  unencouraged  by 
this  his  first  view  of  that  part  of  the  city. 

In  the  third  story  of  this  building  he  found  the 
schoolroom, — the  hall  of  a  lodge  of  colored  Odd  Fel- 
lows,— with  its  low  ceiling,  yellow-washed  walls,  dirty 
windows,  and  rough  benches.  Pandemonium  reigned. 
The  ragged  youngsters  were  tumbling  about  the  room, 
calling  from  the  windows,  or  staring  at  the  good  clothes 
of  those  who  had  come  to  teach  them.  Hardly  one 
of  the  scholars  could  read,  or  showed  the  slightest 
indication  of  ever  having  had  any  religious  instruc- 
tion. It  was  just  a  tangle  of  wild-eyed,  harum- 
scarum  street  gamins,  who  were  on  hand  to  see 
whatever  fun  might  be  forthcoming. 

Then  it  was  given  to  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  to  ren- 
der his  first  service  in  the  Sunday-school  missionary 


io8 


Henry  Clay  Tj^umbull 


work  as  a  follower  of  the  gentle  and  sympathizing 
Nazarene.  In  the  low-browed  room,  among  the 
bruised  and  blunted  urchins  of  the  streets,  a  little 
child  was  in  such  needy  plight  that  the  hungry, 
unloved  soul  within  his  wasted  body  cried  aloud  to 
Henry  Trumbull  above  the  din  of  that  pitiful  place, 
though  the  boy  had  made  no  sound.  And  he  heeded 
that  cry,  with  his  ever-sensitive  responsiveness  to  the 
wordless  longings  of  any  soul  in  need  of  a  sympa- 
thizing friend. 

As  I  sat  watching,"  he  wrote,  "  with  mingled 
emotions  of  wonder,  doubt,  and  pity,  this  strange  col- 
lection of  young  immortals  in  such  pitiable  bhndness 
and  such  a  depth  of  depravity,  my  eye  fell  upon  the 
face  of  one  child  even  more  forlorn  looking  than  the 
others.  Apparently  about  ten  years  of  age,  he  bore 
in  his  dress  and  person  unmistakable  marks  of  the 
most  abject  poverty,  and  the  expression  of  his  face 
betokened  a  close  and  sad  acquaintance  with  want, 
suffering,  and  care.  No  smile  lighted  his  countenance 
as  he  listlessly  gazed  around  the  room  and  upon  its 
inmates,  and  no  expression  of  interest  in  anything 
around  him  could  be  detected  there ;  but  apparently 
suffering  from  toothache  or  other  source  of  physical 
discomfort,  he  was  vainly  endeavoring  to  adjust 
around  his  face  a  coarse,  dirty  rag  as  a  bandage  for 
his  swollen  cheek.  Seeing  that  he  was  unable  to 
secure  it  above  his  head,  I  stepped  across  the  room, 
and,  taking  the  cloth  from  his  hands,  folded  it  anew 
and  tied  it  carefully  as  he  desired. 

"  As,  with  a  few  words  of  sympathy,  I  removed  my 
hands,  the  boy  turned  up  his  face  to  mine  with  a  look 


An  Old  Time  Mission  School  109 


of  mingled  wonder  and  gratitude  that  I  can  never  for- 
get. It  was  most  expressive  and  comprehensive,  for 
in  it  I  read  his  whole  life's  history  of  sadness  and  suf- 
fering. It  told  of  the  harsh  treatment  which  here- 
tofore only  he  had  met,  of  the  unkind  looks,  hard 
words,  and  frequent  blows  which  he  had  been  accus- 
tomed to  receive  from  those  whom  he  considered  as 
his  best  friends,  and  now,  at  this  simple  proof  of 
kindness  and  sympathy  on  the  part  of  a  stranger, 
his  heart  evidently  bounded  forth  with  gladness,  and 
overflowed  with  new  and  strange  feelings  of  gratitude 
and  delight. 

"  That  look  disproved  in  an  instant  all  the  asser- 
tions, and  answered  as  quickly  all  the  arguments  in 
support  of  the  claim  that  these  poor,  depraved,  and 
hardened  sinners  were  beyond  the  reach  of  good  in- 
fluence, were  lost  to  all  the  better  feelings  of  our 
nature,  and  could  not  be  won  by  gratitude  to  love  a 
God  of  mercy,  goodness,  and  kindness,  of  whom  they 
should  for  the  first  time  hear." 

Henry  Trumbull  had  come  to  the  Morgan  Street 
School  believing  that  the  conditions  which  surrounded 
it  were  not  to  be  met  by  the  work  that  the  Sunday- 
school  could  do.  But  in  the  eyes  of  a  wondering, 
grateful  boy  of  the  streets  he  saw  the  Sunday-school 
fulfilling  its  mission,  and  straightway  he  followed  the 
vision. 

"  See  that  dirty  child  !  He  would  not  w^eigh  much 
in  avoirdupois  now.  but  in  the  balances  of  eternity  his 
soul  will  outweigh  a  planet !  "  That  was  Theodore 
L.  Cuyler's  vivid  way  of  giving  his  estimate  of  the 


I  lO 


Henry  Clay  Trumbttll 


immeasurable  value  of  such  a  soul,  as  his  voice  rang 
out  in  the  Second  Connecticut  State  Sunday-school 
Convention  in  1858.  It  was  with  no  lighter  estimate 
of  the  worth  of  a  soul  that  David  Hawley  and  Henry 
Clay  Trumbull  laid  hold  upon  the  work  God  had 
given  them  to  do  in  Hartford  among  the  rougher 
children  of  the  city. 

David  Hawley  himself  came  to  realize  in  the  course 
of  his  rich  experience  how  much  there  was  for  any 
man  to  learn  in  dealing  with  the  suspicious,  wary 
youngsters  whom  they  wished  to  reach. 

"  It  seems  a  very  small  matter,"  said  Father  Haw- 
ley, "  to  put  one's  hand  on  to  a  little  boy's  head,  and 
yet  it  took  me  a  long  time  to  learn  just  how  to  do  it. 
I  mean,  it  was  a  long  time  before  I  learned  to  put  my 
hand  on  a  boy's  head  as  he  never  had  a  hand  put  on 
before,  so  that  he  could  feel  my  heart  in  the  ends  of 
my  fingers,  and  know  that  my  hand  was  on  his  head 
because  I  loved  him." 

And  Mr.  Hawley  and  Mr.  Trumbull  learned  to  use 
the  hand  of  steel  beneath  the  velvet  glove.  A  little 
colored  boy  ran  forward  and  stood  on  his  head  in  front 
of  the  platform.  "  Why,  bub,"  said  Mr.  Hawley  pleas- 
antly, **  you  made  a  mistake, — you  got  the  wrong  end 
down ;  "  and  so  saying,  he  turned  the  little  chap  right 
end  up,  and  went  on  with  the  opening  service  of  the 
school. 

The  superintendent's  self-control  and  his  rapier  wit 
were  called  into  play  on  more  than  one  occasion.  At 
one  time  a  big  boy  named  Murphy  appeared,  wearing 
a  very  high  paper  collar,  in  burlesque  of  the  fashion- 
able one  worn  by  Mr.  Trumbull.    He  walked  to  the 


An  Old  Time  Mission  School       1 1 1 


desk,  removed  the  collar,  and  laid  it  before  the  super- 
intendent. Mr.  Trumbull  accepted  it  with  a  serious 
face,  in  spite  of  the  laughter  of  the  school.  His  op- 
portunity came  after  the  close  of  the  session,  when 
Murphy  said  to  him  as  they  were  leaving  the  room  : 

"  Do  you  know  I  have  taken  to  the  stage  ?  " 

Mr.  Trumbull,  with  a  twinkle  in  his  eye,  turned  to 
another  boy,  saying : 

"  Kxidi  you  drive  stage,  too,  Dennis  ?  " 

"  Did  he  think  I  drove  an  old  rattletrap,  like 
Dennis  ?  "  muttered  Murphy  in  a  disgusted  aside  to 
those  near  him.  I  do  the  literary  and  classical. 
I'm  playing  Macbeth  !  " 

Morgan  Street  teemed  with  experiences  for  its 
young  superintendent.  When  the  enrolment  was 
about  two  hundred,  he  noted  the  fact  that  among 
these  were  about  twenty  Jews,  seventy-five  Roman 
Catholics,  forty  blacks,  and  others  of  some  nine  differ- 
ent nationalities.  Here  was  a  company,  even  when 
smaller,  not  easy  to  manage  or  uplift.  Yet  it  was  the 
rule  under  Mr.  Trumbull's  superintendency  not  to  call 
the  police  under  any  circumstances. 

"  Straight-flung  words,  and  few,"  was  the  platform 
rule,  and  no  one  had  better  control  of  himself,  and 
hence  of  his  listeners,  than  Mr.  Trumbull,  in  those 
crowded  moments  in  the  dingy  room  with  its  restless 
and  explosively  critical  audience.  Here  he  caught 
the  spirit  and  observed  the  method  of  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Ellas  R.  Beadle,  pastor  of  the  newly  organized  Pearl 
Street  Congregational  Church,  a  man  who  was  equal 
to  any  emergency  in  public  speech,  and  exceptionally 


112 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


impressive  in  words  to  individuals.  Dr.  Beadle  had 
been  a  missionary  in  Syria,  and,  at  his  suggestion, 
Trumbull  a  little  later  seriously  thought  of  going  to 
the  new  Micronesian  field,  and  would  probably  have 
gone  if  he  had  not  been  called  to  other  mission  serv- 
ice. At  Morgan  Street  Dr.  Beadle  was  one  of  the 
few  who  could  grip  the  attention  of  the  school,  and 
any  man  who  could  do  that  was  worthy  of  study  on 
the  part  of  the  superintendent. 

When  Dr.  Beadle  was  addressing  the  school  one 
day,  he  held  up  a  fresh-water  clam  shell,  and  called 
out,  "  Boys,  what's  that  ?  "  "A  clam  shell,"  was  the 
prompt  reply. 

'*  Yes,  it's  a  clam  shell — a  rough,  coarse  clam  shell." 
Then  he  showed  the  other  valve,  with  a  polished  out- 
side.   "  And  what  is  that,  boys  ?  " 

"  That's  a  clam  shell,  too." 

"  Yes,  but  see  how  much  prettier  this  side  is.  What 
makes  the  difference  ?  " 

"  It's  been  rubbed  down,"  said  one. 

"  It's  been  polished  up,"  said  another. 
Yes,  that's  it.     And,  boys,  do  you  know  that's 
just  what  we  are  trying  to  do  with  you  in  this 
Sunday-school?     This  polishing   business  is  hard 
work,  boys,  and  it  takes  time;  but  it  pays." 

And  Dr.  Beadle  was  ever  afterward  heartily  wel- 
comed by  the  boys  of  that  school  as  "  the  clam-shell 
man." 

Trumbull  learned  there  the  scanty  mental  holdings 
of  the  children  of  the  streets.  One  little  fellow  was 
asked  by  one  of  the  teachers  the  usual  questions, 
— who  his  Maker  was,  who  was  the  first  man,  who 


An  Old  Time  Mission  School       1 1 3 


built  the  ark,  who  was  cast  into  the  lions'  den.  To 
none  of  these  could  he  give  answer. 

"  Why,  my  boy,  what  do  you  know  ?  "  cried  his 
teacher,  despairingly. 

"  I  know  the  head  from  the  tail  of  a  cent,"  was  the 
cheery  reply. 

In  an  address  at  the  semi-centennial  of  the  Hart- 
ford City  Missionary  Society,  the  outgrowth  of  the 
young  men's  organization  which  had  founded  the 
Morgan  Street  Mission,  Dr.  E.  M.  Gallaudet  thus 
described  the  young  superintendent,  who  was  his  inti- 
mate friend  and  co-worker,  and  later  his  brother-in- 
law  : 

"  He  had  an  eye  as  piercing  and  masterful  as 
Father  Hawley,  and  he  was  equally  persuasive  and 
magnetic  in  manner. 

"  The  two  terrors  of  the  school  bore  the  name  of 
John  Cunningham.  One  was  '  big '  John,  the  other 
'little.'  On  a  certain  Sunday  big  John  came  in,  evi- 
dently under  the  influence  of  liquor  and  looking  for 
trouble.  The  usual  kind  words  did  not  avail  to  keep 
him  quiet,  and  when  the  superintendent  endeavored  to 
get  him  to  go  out  peaceably,  he  took  the  gentle  hand 
laid  on  his  shoulder  as  the  beginning  of  a  fight,  for 
which  he  was  more  than  ready. 

"  But  no  sooner  was  his  coat  off  than  he  found  him- 
self backed  against  a  post  which  supported  the  ceil- 
ing of  the  room,  with  Father  Hawley's  strong  hands 
grasping  his  wrists,  his  hands  crossed  behind  the 
post,  and  Mr.  Trumbull  standing  before  him. 

"  Spitting  in  the  face  of  the  superintendent,  he 
cried  with  an  oath,  'It's  all  I  can  do!'    Mr.  Trum- 


114  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


buil  kept  his  temper,  and  was  presently  able  to  secure 
John's  promise  that  he  would  leave  the  room  without 
further  trouble,  which  he  did." 

But  there  was  encouragement  in  the  work  that  the 
school  was  doing  with  its  most  difficult  material.  A 
troublesome  class  of  boys  had  been  brought  under 
fair  control.  Its  teacher,  absent  on  account  of  ill- 
ness, sent  a  friend  to  teach  the  class.  The  newcomer 
was  helpless.  Mr,  Trumbull  saw  his  predicament, 
spoke  with  the  class  quietly,  and  appealed  to  them  to 
honor  the  friend  of  their  friend  and  teacher.  His  ap- 
peal touched  them.  "  All  right,"  spoke  up  one  of  the 
youngsters,  "  let  him  go  it.  We'll  try  him.  But  he 
must  train  us  ;  our  teacher  did." 

It  was  not  merely  that  his  work  in  the  mission  gave 
Mr.  Trumbull  experience  in  dealing  with  school  prob- 
lems. He  was  learning  very  early  the  hopefulness  of 
any  honest  attempt  to  uplift  a  fellow-man  in  the  name 
of  the  Saviour,  and  that  Lesson  was  well  worth  all  its 
costly  acquiring. 

One  young  fellow  in  the  school  seemed  rather  lower 
in  the  human  scale  than  any  of  the  others.  Deter- 
mined and  unshaken  in  his  perversity  and  shameless- 
ness,  he  repeatedly  left  the  school,  only  to  be  brought 
back  again  and  again  by  dint  of  much  tact  and  per- 
suasion. At  last  he  disappeared  completely.  He  had 
seemed  wholly  incorrigible.  After  a  long  interval,  a 
letter  came  from  him  in  British  India,  where  he  was 
.serving  under  Sir  Colin  Campbell,  bound  for  the 
relief  of  Lucknow.  With  a  march  of  nine  hundred 
miles  behind  him,  heavy  with  hardships  and  dis- 
tresses, sick  at  heart  in  his  loneliness,  and  over- 


An  Old  Time  Missio7i  School  115 


whelmed  with  bitter  memories,  he  had  turned  to  the 
Saviour  of  whom  he  had  learned  in  the  Morgan 
Street  Mission.  And  now  he  was  asking  his  teacher 
and  the  other  workers  in  the  school  to  pray  for  him, 
and  to  thank  God,  as  he  did,  for  his  new  vision. 

The  first  little  fellow  whom  Mr.  Trumbull  saw  in 
the  mission  room,  a  boy  wretched  beyond  expression, 
he  afterwards  met  in  Virginia  on  the  Bermuda  Hun- 
dreds front,  a  soldier  in  the  First  Connecticut  Artil- 
lery. After  the  war  he  came  in  a  carriage  to  call 
upon  Mr.  Trumbull  in  New  Haven,  a  valued  member 
of  a  prominent  church  in  that  city. 

A  colored  boy,  who  had  tried  the  patience  and  faith 
of  the  mission  workers  almost  beyond  measure,  had 
been  in  jail,  even  while  a  member  of  the  school.  On 
the  Sunday  of  his  release  he  came  back  to  the  school. 
He  went  to  the  war  as  an  officer's  servant,  was  sta- 
tioned near  Washington,  and  became  a  teacher  of  the 
freedmen  who  were  then  pouring  into  that  city.  So 
good  a  teacher  was  he  that  he  was  sent  to  North 
Carolina  by  the  Freedmen's  Bureau,  and  was  there 
licensed  as  a  preacher.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
Constitutional  Convention  of  North  Carolina  in  the 
days  of  reconstruction.  One  day  he  called  at  Mr- 
Trumbull's  office,  presenting  letters  of  commendation 
from  Major-Gcneral  O.  O.  Howard  and  ex-Governor 
Holden,  of  North  Carolina. 

"You  see,  Mr.  Trumbull,"  said  he,  "your  work  in 
Morgan  Street  was  not  all  in  vain." 

What  if  the  young  roughs  did  break  up  twilight 
prayer-meetings  by  jeering  the  speakers,  and  by  piling 
easily-tumbled  barrels  on  the  rickety  stairs  ?  They 


1 1 6  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


got  tired  of  that;  and  the  most  disreputable  of  the 
lot,  a  one-legged  colored  boy,  appeared  on  a  certain 
Saturday  at  the  schoolroom  to  ask  if  he  might  help 
the  teachers  in  fixing  it  up  by  "  yellow-washing  "  the 
walls.  What  if  one  ragged  urchin  was  hunted  on  the 
run  by  his  irate  father  for  a  half-mile  along  the  river- 
bank  to  hale  him  to  school  ?  A  little  German  lad 
would  bring  some  other  almost  every  Sunday;  and 
one  day  he  came  in  leading  a  little  girl,  followed  by 
two  small  boys,  and  called  out  to  the  city  missionary : 
**  Mishter  Holle,  I  vas  gyne  bring  de  hole  zity ! " 

Unutterably  sad  that  a  little  girl  of  five  should  come 
to  the  school  intoxicated  by  strong  drink  given  by  her 
mother,  only  to  be  carried  home  to  die !  Yet  beauti- 
ful indeed  was  the  love  of  a  little  girl  for  her  teacher 
when  the  child  called  her  mother  to  her  bedside,  and 
with  her  dying  breath  said :  "  Mother,  don't  tell  my 
Sunday-school  teacher  I  am  dead,  for  it  will  break  her 
heart  to  know  it."  Thus  the  work  had  its  lights  and 
shadows,  as  all  work  has. 

Morgan  Street  was  Mr.  Trumbull's  proving  ground 
in  the  Sunday-school  work, — a  work  by  no  means 
generally  accepted  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  1852  as 
even  a  desirable  feature  of  church  activity.  The  child, 
as  a  child,  was  not  then  studied  with  much  attention 
or  hopefulness,  nor  were  his  peculiar  needs  recognized 
to  any  noteworthy  extent.  Dr.  Trumbull  has  told  of 
his  first  acquaintance  with  modern  Sunday-school 
hymnology,  to  which  he  was  introduced  by  a  visitor 
in  his  school,  who  stood  in  the  middle  of  the  Morgan 
Street  garret  room  while  he  taught  the  scholars  to 
sing    Little  drops  of  water." 


An  Old  Time  Mission  School       1 1 7 


The  visitor  and  singing  leader  was  Daniel  C.  Gil- 
man,  superintendent  of  a  mission  school  in  New 
Haven,  in  later  years  president  of  Johns  Hopkins 
University,  and  again  until  recently  president  of  the 
Carnegie  Institution. 

Singing,  and  plenty  of  it,  was  one  of  the  winsome 
features  of  a  well-defined  purpose  to  make  the  school 
a  delightful  place  for  all.  Gradually  the  scholars 
came  to  learn  that  the  mission  knew  how  to  provide 
for  their  Hkes  as  well  as  for  their  needs.  In  address- 
ing the  first  Connecticut  State  Sunday-school  Con- 
vention in  April,  1857,  after  five  years*  experience 
in  mission  work,  Mr.  Trumbull  said,  as  throwing 
light  on  ways  of  securing  attention :  "  *  How  shall  I 
interest  my  scholars  ? '  asked  one  of  our  teachers  of 
the  city  missionary.  *  Tell  them  bear-stories,  if  you 
can't  do  better ! '  said  Mr.  Hawley,  and  his  idea  is 
the  one  which  must  possess  every  laborer  in  this  field 
to  insure  success, 

"  I  have  known  one  boy  rise  from  a  bed  of  weak- 
ness and  pain,  contrary  to  the  command  of  physician 
and  friends,  and  hurry  on  his  ragged  clothes,  drop 
himself  from  the  window,  and,  scarce  able  to  stand, 
totter  over  to  that  room  at  the  hour  of  gathering.  I 
have  seen  that  room  filled  week  after  week,  and  wh}-? 
The  reason  of  their  gathering,  in  spite  of  all  opposing 
influences,  was  given  in  the  remark  of  a  little  fellow 
who  put  his  head  out  of  the  window  of  that  room  one 
Sabbath  noon,  calling  to  his  companions  in  the  street 
below:  'Boys,  come  up  here;  here's  more  fun  for  a 
quarter  than  you'll  find  anywhere  else  in  Hartford.'" 

The  Morgan  Street  school  had  a  weekly  teachers'- 


ii8 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


meeting.  Mrs.  Alice  Goodwin  states  that  the  teach- 
ers, of  whom  she  was  one  of  the  first,  often  read  at 
these  meetings  a  journal  or  report  of  their  classes, 
and  that  "  Mr.  Trumbull  had  the  faculty  [which 
he  never  lost]  of  recalling  long  conversations,  giv- 
ing the  dialect  of  the  speaker,  and,  with  his  quiet 
sense  of  humor,  the  striking  features  of  the  situation. 
Ways  and  means  of  work  were  reported  and  discussed, 
and  Mr.  Trumbull  maintained  that  the  mission  was 
as  real  and  important  as  if  our  work  was  in  India  or 
China.  So  impressed  were  all  by  this  view  that  when 
an  epidemic  of  Asiatic  cholera  prevailed  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  the  school  the  teachers  were  found  Sun- 
day after  Sunday  in  their  accustomed  places." 

Notwithstanding  the  confining  nature  of  his  railroad 
work,  Mr.  Trumbull  was  by  no  means  neglecting  his 
preparation  outside  the  school  for  the  work  inside  of 
it.  He  looked  back  to  the  Morgan  Street  Mission  as 
the  beginning  of  more  than  one  phase  of  his  life-work. 
It  was  while  he  was  seeking  an  illustration  for  a  talk 
to  the  school  that  he  began  a  study  of  the  coral 
insect  which  drew  him  on  into  many  nights  of  re- 
search. Not  satisfied  with  the  common  story  of  the 
coral  builders'  self-sacrifice,  he  studied  book  after 
book  on  the  subject  in  the  local  libraries  until  he 
really  knew  something  about  coral.  Then,  and  not 
until  then,  was  he  prepared  to  use  the  illustration  he 
wished  to  use.    That  was  his  first  bit  of  real  research. 

Henry  Trumbull  believed  in  prayer  with  a  belief 
that  kept  nothing  in  reserve.  It  was  always  a  charac- 
teristic glory  of  his  nature  that  he  trusted  a  friend 


An  Old  Time  Mission  School  119 


freely  and  without  question.  When  he  had  his  Sa- 
viour's word  for  it  on  any  subject,  that  was  enough 
for  him.  He  could  trust  that  Friend  above  all  others, 
and  he  did. 

This  was  as  true  in  his  Morgan  Street  work  as  else- 
where. In  1854  a  Christmas  party  for  the  school  had 
been  under  consideration.  Something  better  than 
sliding  with  bare  feet  on  frozen  pools — a  neighbor- 
hood pastime — was  thought  desirable.  The  day  was 
close  at  hand,  and  the  sleigh-ride  which  had  been 
planned  as  the  chief  feature  of  the  day's  enjoyment 
was  apparently  not  to  be ;  for  the  weather  was  moder- 
ate, there  was  no  snow  or  sign  of  snow,  and  to  all 
appearance  a  fair  spell  had  set  in. 

But  all  this  was  the  Lord's  work,  reasoned  the 
superintendent,  and  he  could  trust  Him.  So  he  ad- 
vised all  to  go  on  with  the  plans  for  the  sleigh-ride, 
and  he  prayed  for  snow.  During  the  night  before  the 
appointed  day  the  ground  was  covered  to  a  sufficient 
depth  with  a  snowfall  that  lasted  just  long  enough  for 
the  ride. 

That  experience  was  never  forgotten  by  the  super- 
intendent, or  sophistically  set  aside  as  an  accident. 
He  knew  no  accidents.  The  Saviour  was  his  Friend. 
Was  not  that  enough  ? 

Mr.  Trumbull  ever  counted  himself  a  debtor  to  this 
work  which  others  held  was  in  so  great  debt  to  him. 
In  a  letter  read  at  the  semi-centennial  of  the  Mis- 
sionary Society  he  wrote  feelingly : 

And  now  counting  myself  a  product  of  that  work,  I  want 
to  give  thanks  to  the  society  under  which  this  work  was  carried 


I20  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


on,  and  to  tell  how  grateful  I  am  for  what  it  was  in  my  bring- 
ing out  and  bringing  up.  Can  any  say  at  this  semi-centennial 
anniversary  that  they  are  glad  and  grateful  graduates  of 
Morgan  Street  Mission  School?  "So  am  I."  Do  any  claim 
that  they  look  up  with  admiring  and  reverent  thankfulness  to 
Father  Hawley  as  their  leader  and  example  ?    "I  more." 


IN  THE  HOME  OF  THE  GALLAUDETS 


Nor  is  it  sufficient  to  have  Jesus  Christ  as  the 
ideal  standard  of  human  character  and  of  human 
conduct,  without  any  intermediate  exhibit,  be- 
tween him  and  ourselves,  of  the  attributes  and 
traits  which  his  nature  personifies  and  illustrates. 
Human  nature  needs  the  inspiration  and  the 
encouragement  of  purely  human  ideals,  reflect- 
ing and,  so  far,  reproducing  the  one  perfect 
Ideal,  as  an  incentive  and  a  pattern  to  worthy 
being  and  doing.  We  know  that  we  ought  to 
be  like-minded  with  Christ  ;  but  Christ  is  so  far 
above  us,  and  we  are  so  hopelessly  unlike  him 
at  the  best,  that  we  are  in  danger  of  despairing 
in  the  struggle,  while  we  have  nothing  before  us 
but  that  absolutely  perfect  Divine-human  stand- 
ard of  attainment.  When,  however,  we  see  the 
likeness  of  Christ  imaged  in  one  trait  or  another 
of  a  human  follower  of  Christ,  that  trait  has  new 
attractiveness  to  us  from  its  very  possibility  of 
imitation  ;  and  so  the  followers  and  witnesses  of 
Christ  become  our  inspiring  helpers  toward 
Christ. — Aspirations  and  Influences. 


CHAPTER  VIII 


IN  THE  HOME  OF  THE  GALLAUDETS 

Long  before  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  had  any  thought 
of  making  his  home  in  Hartford,  one  man  of  that  city 
had  been  pre-eminent  among  his  boyhood  heroes  as 
the  ideal  writer  of  books  for  youngsters  like  himself 
That  man  was  Thomas  Hopkins  Gallaudet,  who  passed 
away  on  September  lo,  185  i,  only  a  little  while  after 
young  Trumbull  had  removed  to  Hartford  from  his 
Stonington  home.  Gallaudet  was  a  pioneer  in  the 
writing  of  books  for  children,  particularly  in  the  field 
of  religious  reading  and  instruction.  His  books  for 
the  young  were  widely  popular  at  home  and  in  Great 
Britain,  and  they  were  variously  translated  into  French, 
German,  Spanish,  Italian,  Modern  Greek,  Greco-Turk- 
ish, Armeno-Turkish,  Modern  Armenian,  Russ,  Ara- 
bic, Persian,  Burmese,  Hindoostanee,  Siamese,  Malay, 
Chinese,  Nipongwa,  Hawaiian,  Choctaw,  Dakota  and 
Ojibvva. 

Although  the  privilege  of  personal  intercourse  with 
Dr.  Gallaudet  was  denied  him,  Henry  Trumbull  was 
conscious  of  a  sense  of  nearness  to  this  early  mentor 
whom  he  had  known  afar  off,  because  he  was  now  in 
the  city  where  the  great  man's  work  was  conspicu- 
ously prominent  in  one  of  the  city's  most  notable 
institutions.     And,  in  the  providence  of   God,  this 

123 


124  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


boyhood  hero  worship  was  not  to  die  away  in  embers 
and  ashes,  but  was  about  to  be  rekindled  by  events 
which  only  served  to  add  fuel  to  the  fire. 

On  the  26th  of  June,  1852,  in  writing  to  his  mother, 
Henry  declares  enthusiastically : 

I  feel  that  I  belong  to  Hartford,  that  I  am  interested  in  its 
'  prosperity,  and  blessed  when  it  is  blessed.  Among  my  friends 
here  of  whom  I  have  not  written  or  spoken  particularly  to  you, 
I  value  none  higher  than  the  Gallaudet  family,  of  whom  I 
have  spoken  casually  in  one  or  two  of  my  last  letters.  Mr. 
Gallaudet  was,  as  you  may  remember,  the  first  author  with 
whom  I  became  acquainted.  James  [Henry's  eldest  brother] 
procured  for  me  his  child' s  picture,  defining,  and  reading  book, 
and  from  it  taught  me  to  read.  I  then  read  his  "Child's  Book 
on  the  Soul,"  which  was  just  published,  and  I  looked  up  to  the 
Rev.  T.  H.  Gallaudet  as  the  writer  of  the  English  language. 
I  first  became  acquainted  with  his  son  Edward  in  the  nine 
o'clock  evening  prayer-meetings,  being  introduced  by  Sam 
Goodrich,  and  he  is  now  my  most  intimate  friend  in  Hart- 
ford. .  .  . 

He  is  a  good  boy,  actuated  by  firm  and  high  principles.  I 
am  with  him  a  great  deal  of  the  time,  and  through  him  I  have 
become  acquainted  with  his  family,  whom  I  find  to  be  equally 
lovable,  and  whose  friendship  I  find  myself  greatly  blessed 
in  securing.  .  .  . 

Miss  Kate  Gallaudet  his  older  sister,  came  on  the  train  from 
Bristol  this  morning,  and  I  escorted  her  to  the  carriage.  She 
is  beautiful,  and  a  very  agreeable  young  lady.  She  asked  me 
if  I  had  been  to  their  house  during  her  absence  of  some  10 
days,  and  when  I  replied  in  the  negative  she  scolded  me  for 
not  being  neighborly,  and  urged  me  to  call  there  frequently 
and  spend  much  of  my  time  at  the  house. 

Thomas  Hopkins  Gallaudet  was  indeed  a  man  who 
would  attract  others  to  himself  by  his  ways  and 
spirit,  and  his  family  was  worthy  of  him.    He  was  a 


hi  the  Home  of  the  Gallaudets  '  125 


descendant  on  his  father's  side  of  French  Huguenot 
ancestry  that  could  still  further  trace  its  origin  to 
Antonio  Priuli,  Doge  of  Venice  in  1618-1623.  On 
his  mother's  side  he  was  the  great-grandson  of  the 
great-granddaughter  of  Thomas  Hooker. 

It  was  while  he  was  a  student  of  theology,  at  home 
on  a  vacation,  that  Mr.  Gallaudet  became  interested  in 
AHce  Cogswell,  the  deaf-mute  daughter  of  Dr.  Mason 
F.  Cogswell  of  Hartford.  Mr.  Gallaudet  found  that 
he  could  teach  Alice  written  language  by  means  of 
picture-language,  associating  in  her  mind  the  object 
with  the  appearance  of  its  name ;  and  as  the  child's 
knowledge  thus  increased  her  father  was  eager  to  have 
her  instructed  by  the  methods  which  were  then  well 
understood  only  in  Europe.  So  Mr.  Gallaudet,  at  the 
request  of  a  committee  of  citizens,  went  abroad  with 
his  expenses  provided  by  them,  studied  the  sign 
language  under  Abbe  Sicard  in  Paris,  and  brought 
back  with  him  an  apt  pupil  of  Sicard,  Laurent  Clerc. 
Incidentally,  while  in  Paris,  Mr.  Gallaudet  laid  the 
foundation  for  a  work  which  resulted  in  the  establish- 
ing of  the  American  Chapel  in  the  French  capital. 

Out  of  this  pioneer  effort  arose  the  great  work  of 
the  American  Asylum  for  the  Deaf,  or,  as  it  has  been 
later  called,  the  Hartford  School  for  the  Deaf,  to  which 
deaf-mutes  are  grateful  debtors  for  pioneer  and  con- 
tinued exposition  of  the  principles  of  deaf-mute  in- 
struction. Before  this  there  was  no  school  for  the 
deaf  in  America,  and  only  three  such  schools  in 
Europe. 

Shortly  after  Mr.  Gallaudet  returned  from  abroad  to 
begin  the  teaching  of  the  sign  language,  two  daugh- 


126    *  Hejtry  Clay  Trumbull 


ters  of  a  family  living  near  New  Haven  entered  the 
class  first  taught  by  him  in  the  school.  The  younger 
of  these,  Sophia  Fowler,  was  possessed  of  a  rare  and 
charmingly  beautiful  personality ;  and  yet  until  her 
nineteenth  year  she  had  received  no  such  instruction 
as  was  made  possible  by  Mr.  Gallaudet.  Under  his 
instruction  she  developed  to  a  remarkable  degree 
her  natural  gifts,  and  most  unexpectedly  to  her,  she 
was  called  to  a  place  of  prominence  in  the  work 
which  had  so  opened  to  her  the  world  of  expression, 
by  a  proposal  of  marriage  from  Mr.  Gallaudet. 

When  she  became  his  wife  she  became  his  co- 
worker in  his  life  mission.  Her  eldest  son,  Thomas, 
came  to  be  the  beloved  pastor  of  St.  Ann's  Church  for 
deaf-mutes  in  New  York  City,  a  man  who  gave  his 
life  in  self-denying  devotion  to  the  field  of  his  choice. 
Mrs.  Gallaudet  lived  to  see  her  son  Edward,  Henry 
Trumbull's  intimate  friend,  lay  the  foundations  of  the 
National  Deaf  Mute  College,  now  Gallaudet  College, 
Washington,  where  for  ten  years  she  presided  over 
the  household  affairs  of  the  institution.  Thus  she 
lived  and  worked  for  those  who,  like  herself,  belonged 
to  that  great,  and  until  her  husband's  day,  neglected 
company  of  the  eager-eyed  children  of  silence.  In 
the  institution  in  W^ashington  there  is  to-day  in  one 
of  the  corridors  a  memorial  tablet  bearing  the  name 
and  the  dying  message  of  a  youthful  student.  Presi- 
dent Edward  M.  Gallaudet  relates  that  when  Joseph 
Chamberlain,  the  British  prime  minister,  was  visiting 
the  college  some  eighteen  years  ago,  he  saw  this 
tablet  and  took  for  the  text  of  an  eloquent  address 
to  the  students  its  remarkable  inscription  : 


In  the  Home  of  the  Gallaudets  127 


"  It  will  take  away  half  the  bitterness  of  death  to 
have  been  allowed  to  learn  something." 

That  glad  outcry  from  a  soul  which,  without  the 
Gallaudets  must  have  been  but  a  silent  and  expres- 
sionless shadow  of  a  soul  through  all  its  lonely  earthly 
days,  voices  the  significance  of  the  unsparing  service 
that  this  family  has  rendered  to  those  whose  gifts 
were  under  bondage,  and  are  now  set  free. 

Dr.  Edward  M.  Gallaudet  in  his  biography  of  his 
father,  quotes  a  letter  from  Dr.  Yung  Wing,  a  Yale 
graduate,  a  Chinese  mandarin  of  high  rank,  and  for 
some  years  assistant  Chinese  minister  at  Washington, 
in  which  the  distinguished  Chinaman  wrote  of  a  visit 
made  in  his  boyhood  to  the  Gallaudets: 

The  entire  domestic  surroundings  carried  with  them  a 
heavenly  atmosphere,  and  no  one  who  was  present  in  that 
house  on  Prospect  Street,  either  immediately  after  breakfast  or 
after  tea  in  the  evening,  when  all  the  members  met  together, 
could  have  failed  to  be  charmed  with  the  scene. 

There  was  the  doctor  himself,  the  central  figure  of  the 
group.  In  person  he  was  of  medium  height.  He  wore  spec- 
tacles. He  had  a  full,  oval  face,  every  feature  of  which  bore 
lines  of  thought  and  beamed  with  gentle  cheerfulness.  His 
uppermost  thoughts  seemed  to  be  of  Christ  and  humanity, 
and  his  whole  appearance  betokened  a  soul  well  anchored  in 
Christian  trust  and  serenity. 

Then  came  Mrs.  Gallaudet.  I  remember  she  was  the 
last  member  of  the  family  to  whom  I  was  introduced.  I  was 
not  aware,  at  first,  that  she  was  a  mute  ;  her  face  was  full  of 
healthful  color,  with  large,  clear  brown  eyes  that  spoke  vol- 
umes, though  she  could  not  give  her  thoughts  articulate 
expression.  She  had  a  dignified  and  queen-like  air,  softened 
with  a  sweet  smile  which  seemed  to  be  perennial. 

Three  sons,  Thomas,  William,  and  Edward,  the  last  the 
youngest  member  of  the  family,  being  about  my  own  age,  and 


128  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


two  daughters,  Kate  and  Alice,  completed  the  group  [Peter 
Wallace,  the  second  son,  and  Sophia  and  Jane,  the  two  elder 
daughters,  were  absent  from  home].  I  remember  their  faces 
well.  The  two  young  ladies  played  on  the  flute,  while  one  of 
the  brothers  played  on  the  piano.  The  sight  and  sound  were 
novel  to  me,  but  the  music  they  made  at  evenings  was  symbolic 
of  the  gentleness  and  harmony  that  pervaded  the  family. 

Into  this  family  circle  came  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 
while  he  was  a  drudging  clerk  in  the  railroad  office. 
The  spark  within  him  sought  an  atmosphere  con- 
genial to  its  brighter  glowing,  and  he  became  a  fre- 
quent visitor  in  this  home  of  talent  and  good  cheer. 
While  never  professing  any  knowledge  of  music,  he 
was  a  lover  of  it,  and  had  more  discrimination  in  his 
musical  likes  and  dislikes  than  he  would  ever  admit. 
He  had  the  poetic  temperament,  a  fine  sensitiveness 
to  the  spiritual  and  imaginative,  with  no  little  skill  of 
thought  and  touch  in  drawing,  and  a  certain  facility 
in  the  writing  of  verse.  The  collection  of  verse 
manuscripts  in  which  his  youthful  poetic  flights  had 
been  set  forth  was  summarily  destroyed  by  the  poet 
himself,  when  sudden  impulse  and  a  convenient  open 
fire  drove  him  to  the  deed. 

But  evidences  of  his  skill  with  pencil  or  pen  have 
been  preserved,  and  none  more  strikingly  shows  his 
fidelity  to  detail, — a  most  notable  characteristic  in  all 
his  work  of  every  sort, — than  a  piece  of  sheet  music 
which  he  copied  from  an  engraved  four-paged  pro- 
duction. Only  the  most  minute  scrutiny  can  detect 
the  slightest  difference  between  the  original  and  the 
copy.  And  not  only  in  such  delicate  mechanical 
accuracy  was  his  skill  shown,  but  in  careful  little 
pencil  sketches  from  nature  he  exhibited  in  another 


In  the  Home  of  the  Gallaudets  129 


form,  and  with  different  material,  his  capacity  for  re- 
ceiving accurately  the  true  impressions  of  atmosphere 
and  perspective  and  relative  values. 

Mr.  Trumbull's  letter,  already  quoted  in  this  chap- 
ter, fails  to  mention  a  certain  member  of  the  Gallaudet 
family,  who,  however,  finds  a  place  in  a  letter  written 
to  his  mother  on  July  5,  1852 : 

Tell  Grandmother  that  I  called  last  Thursday  evening  on 

the  rich  Miss  of  whom  she  has  often  told  me.    She  sent 

word  to  me  by  Ned  Gallaudet  to  call  upon  her  upon  that  par- 
ticular evening,  as  his  sister  Alice  was  to  be  there  and  spend 
the  evening.  Ned  Gallaudet  and  myself  invited  the  young 
ladies  to  go  to  the  Atheneum  to  see  a  "  night-blooming  Cereus" 
on  exhibition  there.  It  was  a  magnificent  sight, — 9  large  flowers 

in  full  bloom.     Crowds  were  there  to  see  it,  and  Miss  and 

Miss  Gallaudet  insisted  upon  staying  to  see  the  flowers  cut  off, 
and  they  remained  until  nearly  2  o'clock. 

Alice  Cogswell  Gallaudet  was  the  fourth  daughter, 
born  soon  after  the  death  of  the  deaf-mute,  Alice 
Cogswell,  who  had  been  the  means  of  leading  Dr. 
Gallaudet  into  his  beneficent  life-work.  If  there  was 
any  one  characteristic  more  than  another  that  dis- 
tinguished Alice  Gallaudet  in  her  childhood  and 
throughout  her  beautiful  life  it  was  the  utter  forgetful- 
ness  of  self  It  was  more  than  that.  She  verily 
seemed  not  to  know  that  she  had  any  self  to  call  for 
any  thought  from  her,  or  from  any  one  else.  Her 
thought  was  ever  of  others,  and  consequently  all 
others  loved  her,  and  were  drawn  to  her  by  her  self- 
less interest  in  them. 

She  was  hardly  more  than  eighteen  when  Henry 
Trumbull  came  as  a  visitor  into  the  Gallaudet  home. 


I30 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


She  was  in  every  way  lovely,  and  to  the  friend  of  her 
brother  she  was  friendly  in  her  welcome  and  in  her 
interest  in  what  interested  him.  That  was  her  way 
then,  and  always. 

Alice  was  a  lover  of  music,  as  indeed  were  the 
others  in  that  talented  home.  Her  opportunities  for 
musical  culture  were  increased  by  the  generosity  of  a 
family  friend  and  neighbor  who  sent  into  the  Gallau- 
det  home  a  piano  as  a  gift  to  the  household.  To 
Alice  particularly  that  was  a  source  of  immeasurable 
delight.  But  one  morning  when  her  deaf-mute  mother, 
standing  near  the  instrument,  made  signs  of  regret 
that  she  could  not  hear  the  music,  she  for  the  first 
time  was  painfully  conscious  of  her  mother's  depriva- 
tion. It  had  never  really  occurred  to  her  that  her 
mother  was  shut  out  from  such  delights  as  she  her- 
self was  privileged  to  enjoy.  She  turned  away  from 
the  piano,  and  hastened  in  tears  to  her  own  room, 
overwhelmed  with  sorrow. 

It  was  only  after  her  mother  and  father  had  lov- 
ingly urged  her  to  go  on  with  her  practise  that  she 
was  willing  to  do  so.  Years  afterwards,  when  her 
mother  was  in  heaven,  Alice  often  spoke  of  the  joy 
she  had  in  the  thought  that  their  neighbor  and  friend, 
Mrs.  Sigourney,  had  expressed  in  her  poem  on  AHce 
Cogswell's  entrance  into  the  new  life : 

"Sisters  !  there's  music  here  ! 

From  countless  harps  it  flows, 
Throughout  this  bright  celestial  sphere, 

Nor  pause  nor  discord  knows. 
The  seal  is  melted  from  my  ear 

By  love  divine ; 


hi  the  Home  of  the  Gallaudets  131 


And  what  through  life  I  pined  to  hear 

Is  mine  !  is  mine  ! 
The  warbling  of  an  ever  tuneful  choir, 

And  the  full  deep  response  of  David's 
sacred  lyre. 
Did  kind  earth  hide  from  me 

Her  broken  harmony, 
That  thus  the  melodies  of  heaven  might  roll. 

And  whelm  in  deeper  tides  of  bliss  my 
rapt,  my  wondering  soul  ? 
Joy  !  I  am  mute  no  more  ! 

My  sad  and  silent  years 
With  all  their  loneliness  are  o'er. 

Sweet  sisters,  dry  your  tears  ! 
Listen  at  hush  of  eve,  listen  at  dawn  of  day. 

List  at  the  hour  of  prayer, — can  ye 
not  hear  my  lay  ? 
Untaught,  unchecked  it  came, 

As  light  from  chaos  beamed. 
Praising  his  everlasting  name 

Whose  blood  from  Calvary  streamed, 

And  still  it  swells  that  highest  strain,  the  song 
of  the  redeemed." 

Alice  and  her  brothers  and  sisters  were  nurtured 
in  an  atmosphere  of  music,  and  each  of  them  was 
taught  to  sing;  and  Alice  herself,  after  her  father's 
death,  in  order  to  contribute  what  she  could  to  the 
family  income,  gave  lessons  on  the  piano,  receiving 
under  her  care,  at  his  special  request,  the  pupils  of 
her  own  teacher,  Mr.  Gordon,  when  he  left  Hartford 
to  become  a  notable  figure  in  the  musical  world. 

Henry  Trumbull  was  charmed  and  inspired  by 
Alice  as  he  became  more  and  more  intimate  with  the 
family.  The  two  were  very  different  in  temperament, 
yet  alike  in  spirit  and  aims.    Miss  Gallaudet  worked 


132 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


with  him  as  a  teacher  in  the  Morgan  Street  Mission, 
disclosing  there,  as  elsewhere,  her  sweet  sensitiveness 
to  the  joys  and  sorrows  of  others.  As  their  acquaint- 
ance ripened,  the  two  found  themselves  drawn  into 
the  ties  of  a  friendship  which  only  gained  in  its  ideals 
and  unselfish  outreaching  toward  a  life  of  service 
through  their  marriage,  by  Dr.  Joel  Hawes,  on  May 
23,  1854. 


MIXING  POLITICS  AND  RELIGION 


Everywhere  and  always  it  is  sentiment  which 
is  the  chiefest  force,  as  a  swaying  agency  of  the 
human  heart  ;  the  differences  are  in  the  nature 
and  the  object  and  the  measure  of  that  senti- 
ment. That  sentiment  which  rises  to  the  highest 
ideal,  is  ever  that  which  rises  from  the  profound- 
est  depths  of  a  consecrated  being  ;  and  he  who 
sways  others  mightily,  is  always  one  who  himself 
is  mightily  swayed. 

When  General  Joseph  R.  Hawley  was  advoca- 
ting, in  the  United  States  Congress,  the  fitting  ob- 
servance of  our  Centenary  of  American  Inde- 
pendence, he  was  met  by  the  sneer  that  "after 
all  this  is  but  a  sentiment."  "I  know  it,"  re- 
sponded the  general,  in  his  red-hot  earnestness  ; 
"but  I  haven't  a  sentiment  that  I'm  not  ready 
to  die  for."  Whatever  sentiment  is  worth  living 
for,  is  worth  dying  for, — if  dying  be  in  the  line 
of  its  right  achieving.  And  it  is  good  to  be  so 
possessed  with  a  noble  sentiment,  as  to  count  it 
a  minor  matter  whether  life  or  death  be  a  result 
of  its  expression  and  advocacy.  —  Aspirations 
and  Injiuences. 


CHAPTER  IX 


MIXING  POLITICS  AND  RELIGION 

From  his  boyhood  Henry  Trumbull,  though  spare 
and  slight  in  bodily  frame,  was  a  surcharged  battery 
of  vital  energy.  An  easy  chair  was  one  of  his  pet 
aversions;  a  reclining  posture,  mental  or  physical, 
during  the  hours  when  work  was  doing,  or  waiting 
to  be  done,  was  temperamentally  impossible  to  him. 
He  gave  himself  intensely  and  freely  to  any  work  that 
was  his  to  do,  and  if  it  offered  sharp  and  obstinate 
resistance  to  the  pressure  he  brought  to  bear,  then  he 
let  loose  upon  it  with  the  reserves  he  had  in  abundant 
store,  and  drove  through  it  as  a  liner  takes  a  head 
sea. 

"  Trumbull,"  said  a  young  Hartford  business  asso- 
ciate of  powerful  physique,  "  I  can  turn  that  copy- 
ing press  down  so  tight  that  you  can't  turn  it  any 
further !  " 

And  the  challenger  set  his  strong  hands  to  the  iron 
wheel  and  turned  the  plate  of  the  press  so  hard  upon 
the  creaking  letter-book  that  his  boast  seemed  not  an 
idle  one. 

Henry  was  roused.  Everything  on  earth  save  that 
letter-press  was  as  nothing.  He  seized  the  wheel, 
gave  it  a  sudden,  agonizing  wrench,  and  the  heavy 
screw,  unable  to  move  a  hair's  breadth,  obediently 

135 


136  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


snapped  in  two.  That  Henry  had  a  lame  back  for  a 
few  days  was  of  no  account  whatever  to  him.  He 
had  given  the  letter-press  another  turn. 

Put  energy  like  this  into  clerical  work  such  as 
Mr.  Trumbull  was  doing  in  the  railroad  office,  and 
there  would  be  a  margin  that  must  be  accounted  for. 
The  Morgan  Street  Mission  could  take  care  of  some 
of  the  surplus,  as  any  Sunday-school  superintendent 
very  well  knows.  But  even  that  strenuous  service 
among  the  "  Big  John "  Cunninghams  and  the  like 
was  not  enough  to  give  the  Trumbull  dynamo  a  suffi- 
cient load. 

These  were  the  early  days  of  the  Young  Men's 
Christian  Association,  but  there  was  no  branch  in 
Hartford.  Among  the  young  workers  in  that  city 
was  one  who,  because  of  his  denominational  connec- 
tion, could  not  become  an  active  member  of  a  Young 
Men's  Christian  Association.  For  this  and  other 
reasons,  his  fellow-workers  organized  a  religious  asso- 
ciation under  the  name  of  "  The  Moral  and  Social 
Union,"  in  which  all  could  have  full  membership. 

In  this  Union  Mr.  Trumbull  was  deeply  interested. 
It  was  he  who  secured  the  Rev.  Dr.  Thomas  M. 
Clark,  of  Christ  Church,  Hartford,  to  preach  the 
sermon  at  the  first  public  meeting  of  the  Union. 
More  than  a  half  century  later  Dr.  Trumbull  wrote 
of  that  sermon  from  Ecclesiastes  4:9,  10: 

"  Work  for  another  soul  has  appealed  to  me  with 
fresh  power  and  hope  ever  since  hearing  it,  and  this  I 
said  to  Bishop  Clark,  when,  fifty  years  after  that,  he 
was  last  in  Philadelphia  as  the  presiding  bishop  of 
the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  of  the  United  States. 


Mixing  Politics  and  Religion  137 


"  It  is  not  for  me  to  say,"  he  wrote  of  the  Union 
itself,  "  that  we  acted  wisely  in  deciding  as  to  the 
name  and  bounds  of  our  organization,  but  I  do  say 
unhesitatingly  that  we  did  well  in  planning  for  work 
for  Christ  and  for  souls." 

And  one  who  wrote  the  salutatory  of  the  Union, 
then  a  clerk  in  a  publishing  house,  and  now  Professor 
Henry  E.  Robins  of  Rochester  Theological  Seminary, 
writes  out  of  his  own  mature  conviction : 

I  think  we  all  concluded,  after  experiment,  that 
we  were  not  as  wise  as  serpents  in  dropping  the  word 
Christian,  in  the  mistaken  notion  that  we  could  allay 
the  prejudice  of  worldly  men  by  so  doing.  Frank- 
ness in  our  dealings  with  men  always  wins." 

There  was  other  work  that  a  man  might  do  in 
the  complex,  troublous  days  of  the  fifties,  even  as 
now  in  our  less  hectic  times.  As  early  as  1844, 
when  young  Trumbull,  at  fourteen,  raised  his  voice 
with  any  man  in  Stonington  for  the  principle-loving 
Whig  party,  he  was  a  politician,  in  a  sense  which, 
unhappily,  is  not  always  a  connotation  of  that  term 
to-day.  He  was  familiar  then  with  the  name  and 
reputation  of  every  member  of  both  Houses  of 
Congress,  from  all  parts  of  the  country,  and  he 
could  give,  offhand,  the  latest  electoral  vote  of 
every  state,  with  the  state  majority  on  either  side. 
He  attended  political  meetings  for  miles  around  his 
native  place,  and  he  had  a  perfectly  normal  and,  con- 
sequently, a  very  definite  and  intelligent  interest  in 
political  affairs. 

Shortly  after  Mr.  Trumbull  moved  to  Hartford  the 
Scott-Pierce  campaign  was  in  full  swing.    It  was  the 


138  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


last  national  contest  between  the  Whigs,  as  such,  and 
the  Democrats.  At  the  height  of  the  campaign  the 
Whig  meeting  was  held  in  Hartford,  led  by  Isaac  W. 
Stuart,  who  owned  the  famous  "  Charter  Oak  Place," 
where  stood  the  old  oak  in  whose  hollow  trunk  had 
been  hidden  the  charter  given  by  Charles  II  to  the 
younger  John  Winthrop,  as  representing  the  Con- 
necticut colony.  At  this  Whig  meeting  the  principal 
speaker  was  Henry  C.  Deming,  later  mayor  of  Hart- 
ford, and  again  war  mayor  of  New  Orleans  under 
General  Butler. 

Mr.  Trumbull  was  in  the  audience  as  one  of  the 
enthusiastic  Whig  young  men.  Suddenly  Mr.  Stuart 
called  out  Trumbull's  name,  saying  that  he  had  heard 
of  him  as  a  mission-school  speaker,  and  from  his  name 
and  work  he  ought  to  have  something  to  say.  Taken 
clean  aback,  Trumbull  promptly  tried  to  leave  the 
room,  but  Mr.  Deming  detained  him,  threw  his  arms 
around  him,  and  led  him  to  the  front.  Then  Trum- 
bull made  his  first  political  speech. 

It  was  while  the  Kansas-Nebraska  bill  was  under 
discussion  in  Congress  that  Mr.  Trumbull  attended  a 
notable  meeting  in  the  old  City  Hall,  on  Kingsley 
Street.  It  was  a  non-partisan  gathering,  to  protest 
against  the  violation  of  the  Missouri  Compromise. 
In  that  meeting  were  Thomas  S.  Williams,  formerly 
a  Federal  member  of  Congress  and  later  chief  justice 
of  the  state ;  William  W.  Ellsworth,  formerly  a  Whig 
member  of  Congress,  governor  of  the  state,  and  then 
a  judge  of  the  state  supreme  court, — a  son  of  Chief 
Justice  Ellsworth  of  the  United  States  Supreme  Court 
in  Washington's  day;  John  M.  Niles,  Postmaster- 


Mixing  Politics  a7id  Religion  139 


General  in  Van  Buren's  cabinet,  for  years  the  editor 
of  the  Hartford  Times,  the  leading  Democratic  paper 
in  the  state ;  Gideon  Welles,  also  a  veteran  Times 
editor,  a  naval  bureau  chief  in  Polk's  administration, 
and  later  Secretary  of  the  Navy  under  Lincoln ;  and 
young  Joseph  R.  Hawley,  then  an  active  supporter 
of  the  "  Liberty  Party." 

Such  a  gathering  as  this  was  likely  to  make  an  im- 
pression on  such  a  man  as  Henry  Clay  Trumbull. 
He  reported  the  meeting  for  the  New  York  Tribune, 
and  he  went  out  from  it  with  his  mind  clear  on  issues 
which  led  to  the  formation  of  the  Republican  party, 
with  which  he  united  in  1856. 

On  February  i  of  that  year  Mr.  Trumbull  formed  a 
co-partnership  with  Charles  P.  Welles,  under  the  firm 
name  of  Charles  P.  Welles  &  Co.,  to  conduct  what  was 
known  as  the  "  Hartford  Family  Medicine  Store,"  of 
which  Mr.  Welles  had  been  the  sole  proprietor.  The 
local  papers  heartily  commended  the  new  firm,  and 
the  Courant  spoke  of  Mr.  Trumbull  as  "well  known 
to  great  numbers  in  this  community  for  his  active 
labors  in  various  philanthropical  works,"  and  as  one 
who  "  has  returned  to  the  business  to  which  he  was 
early  trained."  The  construction  work  of  the  Hart- 
ford, Providence,  and  Fishkill  Railroad  was  nearing 
completion,  and  Henry  Trumbull  not  unnaturally 
reverted  to  the  business  of  which  he  had  learned 
much  in  the  dispensary  of  his  uncle,  Dr.  Palmer,  in 
Stonington.  Apparently  the  drug  business  was  to  be 
his  life-work.  It  is  said  that  atavistic  tendencies  will 
assert  themselves. 

As  a  member  of  the  new  firm,  Mr.  Trumbull's  time 


140  Heni^y  Clay  Trtwibull 


was  more  his  own  than  it  had  been  in  the  employ  of 
the  railroad.  He  was  profoundly  stirred  by  the  great 
principles  that  were  then  at  stake  in  the  national  life, 
and  he  grappled  with  the  problems  of  the  hour  even 
as  he  had  flung  himself,  with  every  spark  of  power  he 
possessed,  at  the  rigid  iron  wheel  of  the  letter-press. 

The  Republican  party  was  calling  to  its  ranks  the 
conservative  elements  of  the  old  Whig  and  Demo- 
cratic parties  in  the  northern  states.  Free  Soilers, 
Free  State  men,  men  of  the  Know  Nothing "  or 
American  party,  rallied  around  the  Republican  can- 
didate, John  C.  Fremont.  Where  individual  inde- 
pendence of  party  action  and  habitual  consideration 
of  principles  was  a  characteristic  of  the  people,  the 
demand  for  such  men  as  Henry  Trumbull,  in  com- 
mittee work  and  on  the  stump,  was  unceasing  and 
compelling. 

During  the  campaign  of  '56  he  was  in  charge  of 
the  local  canvass  in  Hartford.  His  unhampered  vis- 
ion of  the  rights  of  any  matter,  of  the  way  to  get  at 
the  heart  of  a  truth  or  a  method,  was  showing  itself 
even  then.  Political  battles  had  been  fought  time 
and  again  with  the  handy,  but  unreliable,  weapons  of 
excitement  and  momentary  enthusiasm.  Mr.  Trum- 
bull believed  in  this  as  far  as  it  was  good  and  effective, 
but  he  knew  its  uncertainties.  He  began  a  month 
before  the  Fremont  election  to  make  a  systematic 
canvass  of  his  field,  making  a  list  of  voters  and  getting 
helpers  to  look  after  small  sections,  and  to  round  up 
the  voters  on  election  day.  All  this  was  new  then  in 
the  field  of  politics.  Edward  H.  Rollins,  of  New 
Hampshire,  was  doing  a  similar  work  in  his  field,  but 


Mixing  Politics  and  Religion  141 


neither  knew  of  the  methods  of  the  other.  That  work 
carried  the  day  for  Fremont  in  Hartford. 

It  was  one  of  the  significant  occurrences  in  Mr. 
Trumbull's  varied  life  that  he  was  not  elected  to  the 
office  of  constable  and  collector  on  the  Fremont  ticket, 
losing  by  one  hundred  and  sixty  votes  to  Oliver  D. 
Seymour,  the  very  satisfactory  incumbent,  who  won 
partly  because  of  his  own  record,  and  partly  be- 
cause the  Fremonters  thought  Trumbull  was  sure 
to  win. 

But  Mr.  Trumbull  was  not  working  for  office.  He 
was  on  the  stump  throughout  the  state.  When  he 
signed  the  roll  of  the  Fremont  Club,  on  July  16,  1856, 
at  a  rousing  meeting  in  the  Hartford  City  Hall,  he 
made  a  speech  that  the  Courant  characterized  as  a 
"  telling  speech,  which  brought  down  the  house 
repeatedly."  Whether  he  was  in  West  Hartford,  or 
Meriden,  or  Rockville,  or  in  any  other  town,  his 
speeches  always  made  a  hit.  He  was,  as  ever,  a  cap- 
tivating teller  of  stories ;  in  facial  expression,  word, 
and  gesture  a  perfect  mimic,  playing  upon  the  feel- 
ings of  an  audience  with  the  clever  touch  of  an  uner- 
ring dramatic  sense. 

As  he  went  about  the  state  during  the  campaign, 
in  one  town  the  papers  would  report  his  speech  as 
"  one  of  the  very  best  speeches  to  which  it  has  ever 
been  our  privilege  to  listen."  In  another,  as  in  old 
Stafford,  he  attained  the  distinction  of  a  bitter  dia- 
tribe flung  at  him  by  a  townsman  of  the  opposite 
party,  who  hurled  his  shafts  from  the  security  of 
anonymity  in  the  public  press ;  **  insensible  twad- 
dle and  slang  "  was  the  sum  of  his  oratorical  failure 


142  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


there.  Or,  again,  in  his  Hartford  home  he  was  stig- 
matized by  a  local  paper  as  "  apothecary,  innocent 
orator,  and  political  squib,"  after  a  banquet  of  Fre- 
monters  on  November  15,  1856,  at  which  he  was  pre- 
sented with  a  silver  cup  in  recognition  of  his  services 
to  the  victorious  local  ticket. 

Senator  Orville  H.  Piatt,  of  Connecticut,  relates 
that  Mr.  Trumbull's  speeches  were  "  interspersed 
with  anecdotes,"  one  of  which  the  Senator  vividly 
remembered.  The  young  orator  was  speaking  of 
the  "  dough-faces,"  men  without  spirit  enough  to 
stand  by  their  convictions.  "  They  have  not  even 
the  spirit,"  he  said,  "  of  the  hen-pecked  husband 
who  was  compelled  by  his  strong-minded  wife  to 
crawl  under  the  bed  when  visitors  came.  Upon 
one  occasion  he  lifted  the  valance  and  furtively 
looked  out,  observed  only  by  his  wife.  After  the 
company  had  gone  she  berated  him  for  his  temer- 
ity. He  roused  himself  enough  to  exclaim,  *  I  want 
you  to  understand  that  just  so  long  as  I  have  the 
spirit  of  a  man  I  will  peek  ! '  " 

When  at  the  close  of  that  campaign,"  wrote  Dr. 
Trumbull,  "  I,  with  two  of  my  political  campaigners, 
called  at  the  home  of  General  Fremont  in  New  York 
City,  and  passed  an  hour  with  '  Fremont  and  Jessie ' 
[Jessie  Benton  Fremont,  his  nationally  popular  wife], 
they  both  seemed  to  us  all  that  we  had  imagined 
them.  We  had  been  ready  to  do  everything  in  our 
power  for  them ;  and  they  had  done  much  for  us  in 
causing  us  to  be  thus  daring  and  hopeful. 

"  Mrs.  Fremont's  hearty  interest  in  her  husband's 
campaign  was  shown  in  her  enthusiastic  comments 


Mixing  Politics  and  Religion 


143 


that  evening  on  its  details.  Speaking  of  the  closing 
days  of  the  canvass,  she  said  : 

" '  The  Sunday  before  the  election  the  General  and 
I  went  over  to  Brooklyn  to  hear  Mr.  Beecher  preach. 
It  was  a  treat :  pastor  and  people  were  heartily  in 
accord  with  the  great  issue  at  stake.  When  they 
recognized  us  in  the  congregation,  they  seemed  in- 
clined to  break  into  cheers.  Indeed,  at  the  close  of 
the  service,  they  practically  did  so.  We  had  difficulty 
in  getting  away  from  the  enthusiastic  crowd.  As  I 
saw  how  they  felt  about  us,  I  wanted  to  say  to  them 
all,  I  hope  you'll  all  show  how  sincere  this  feeling  is 
by  being  on  hand  early  to  vote  right  next  Tuesday,"  '  " 

For  the  canvass  of  1858,  in  the  campaign  which  re- 
sulted in  the  election  of  William  A.  Buckingham  as 
Governor  of  Connecticut,  Henry  Trumbull  was  ap- 
pointed by  the  State  Republican  Committee  as  a 
member  for  Hartford  County  of  the  State  Central 
Committee.  On  April  10,  Governor  Buckingham 
offered  him  a  place  on  his  military  staff  with  the  rank 
of  colonel.  **  In  the  appointment  of  my  aids,"  the 
governor  wrote  with  his  own  hand,  "  I  have  felt  that  I 
might  be  governed  in  a  great  measure  by  my  personal 
preferences,  knowing  that  such  appointments  would 
have  but  little  influence  upon  the  general  interest. 

"  I  have  been  much  pleased  with  what  I  have  seen  and 
heard  of  you,  and  knowing  you  possess  traits  of  char- 
acter which  I  highly  esteem,  I  have  felt  that  I  could 
offer  you  the  position  of  one  of  my  aides-de-camp,  with 
full  confidence  that  your  acceptance  would  be  highly 
satisfactory  to  myself  and  our  Republican  friends.  .  .  . 
I  would  not  press  you  into  an\'  such  service  against 


144  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


your  interest  or  wishes,  but  would  have  you  consider 
the  matter  after  this  formal  and  cordial  offer." 

But  Dr.  Trumbull  could  not  see  the  way  clear  to 
accept  the  offer,  and  he  was  obliged  to  decline  it. 
He  was  already  getting  the  first  glimpses  of  a  work 
which  was  to  claim  his  attention  for  many  years.  His 
connection  with  C.  P.  Welles  &  Co.  had  lasted  hardly 
more  than  a  year.  At  the  close  of  the  campaign  of 
'58  he  was  chosen  editor  of  the  Hartford  Evening 
Press.  Gideon  Welles  was  to  aid  him  in  an  advis- 
ory capacity,  and  William  Faxon,  afterward  Assistant 
Secretaiy  of  the  Navy,  was  to  be  the  publisher. 

At  this  juncture  Mr.  James  M.  Bunce,  one  of  the 
owners  of  the  Press,  urged  Trumbull  to  make  a  busi- 
ness connection  with  him  in  cotton  and  wool  broker- 
age, and  to  turn  aside  from  the  editorship.  Mr. 
Bunce  took  it  upon  himself  to  secure  the  other  own- 
ers' consent  to  the  change  of  plan.  Having  done  so, 
he,  with  Mr.  Trumbull,  secured  Joseph  R.  Hawley  as 
editor,  and  this  was  Hawley's  beginning  in  his  long 
editorial  career. 

The  wool  business  was  prostrated,  and  for  the  time 
being  wiped  out,  by  the  after  effects  of  the  panic  of 
'57.  With  no  diminution  of  commercial  credit,  Mr. 
Bunce  and  Mr.  Trumbull  within  a  few  months  closed 
up  their  affairs,  and  Mr.  Trumbull  was  listening  for 
the  next  call  of  duty.    It  was  not  long  in  coming. 

One  day  he  met  Father  Hawley  on  the  street.  The 
good  city  missionary  greeted  him  with  "  Trumbull,  I 
hear  you're  out  of  business.  I'm  glad  of  it.  I  hope 
the  Lord  will  harrow  up  your  nest  as  often  as  you 
build  it  outside  of  his  field  !  " 


SUNDAY-SCHOOL  FIELD  WORK 
IN  THE  FIFTIES 


It  is  hard  to  be  always  restless  ;  but  nothing 
that  is  good  is  easy.  Dying  is  easy  ;  it  is  living 
that  is  hard.  Rest  is  the  symbol  of  death. 
Unrest  is  the  assurance  of  life.  Let  us  thank 
God  that  we  live  and  that  we  are  unceasingly 
restless. — An  editorial  paragraph. 

It  is  just  thirty  years  ago,  on  the  day  of  this 
writing,  that  I  entered  the  Sunday-school  field 
as  the  field  of  my  chosen  life-work. 

My  belief  in  the  value  of  the  agency  was  a 
cause,  and  not  a  result,  of  my  being  engaged  in 
it.  If  there  was  a  better  agency  available  in  the 
plans  of  God,  I  wanted  to  change  my  course  ac- 
cordingly. And  so  it  was  that  I  entered  upon  a 
critical  examination  of  the  teachings  of  the  Bible 
and  of  outside  history,  in  order  to  learn  more 
surely  what  was  God's  chiefest  provision  for  the 
ingathering  and  for  the  religious  upbringing  of 
the  children  of  men.  The  more  I  studied  the 
more  I  found,  in  the  teachings  of  Scripture  and 
of  history,  which  was  at  variance  with  traditional 
practices  and  views,  but  which  must  be  accepted 
by  him  who  would  follow  God' s  word  and  the 
leadings  of  sound  reason.  I  came  to  realize,  as 
never  before,  that  the  Sunday-school  of  to-day 
substantially  represents  God's  chosen  agency, 
from  of  old,  for  the  evangelizing  and  for  the  in- 
struction of  those  whom  his  Church  is  set  to 
reach  and  to  rear  ;  and  in  this  new  conviction 
I  gained  steadily  in  devotedness  to  the  work 
which  I  now  deemed  God's  work  pre-eminently. 
—  Yale  Lectures  on  the  Sunday -School. 


CHAPTER  X 


SUNDAY-SCHOOL  FIELD  WORK  IN  THE  FIFTIES 

American  life  can  hardly  be  said  to  have  felt  the 
influence  of  the  Sunday-school  before  1815-20.  As 
late  as  18 14,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Lyman  Beecher  preached 
his  famous  sermon  on  The  Waste  Places  of  New 
England,"  in  which  he  pointed  out  the  good  that 
might  be  done  in  meeting  the  religious  destitution  of 
his  day  by  systematic  religious  instruction  in  the 
home.  In  1828,  when  he  repubhshed  the  sermon,  he 
added  this  note :  "  Since  this  was  written,  the  system 
of  Sabbath-schools  has  more  than  realized  all  that  at 
the  time  had  been  asked  or  thought." 

Even  as  late  as  1830,  it  was  by  no  means  generally 
accepted  that  a  little  child  could  be  taught  spiritual 
truths.  Rote  memorizing  of  catechism  and  of  Scrip- 
ture was  by  many  supposed  to  be  the  nearest  approach 
that  the  child  could  make  to  the  truth  contained  in 
the  words.  This  foreshortened  view  of  the  child-soul 
totally  distorted  the  popular  picture  of  the  Sunday- 
school.  "  Who  would  have  supposed,"  said  Presi- 
dent Francis  Wayland  of  Brown  University,  speaking 
of  "  infant  schools,"  then  new  in  America,  "  that  the 
memory,  the  judgment,  the  understanding,  and  the 
conscience  of  so  young  a  child  were  already  so  per- 
fectly formed,  and  so  susceptible  of  improvement  ?  " 

147 


148  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


In  1824,  in  the  Seventh  Annual  Report  of  the  Phila- 
delphia Sunday  and  Adult  School  Union,  the  prede- 
cessor of  the  American  Sunday-School  Union,  it  was 
given  as  a  striking  fact  that  "  in  St.  James'  Sunday- 
school,  Lancaster  [Pennsylvania],  there  are  some 
pious  children^' — the  word  "  children  "  appearing  in 
italics.  The  report  is  distinguished  also  by  this  re- 
markable statement,  that  in  one  of  the  Delaware 
County  schools  [in  Pennsylvania]  "  a  boy  has  made  a 
public  profession  of  religion." 

When,  a  few  years  earlier  than  this,  Harriet  Lath- 
rop,  as  a  young  girl,  gathered  a  little  group  of  chil- 
dren for  Bible  study  in  the  gallery  of  the  First  Church 
in  Norwich  Town,  Connecticut,  she  was  soon  forbid- 
den the  use  of  the  gallery,  and  withdrew  to  a  near-by 
schoolhouse,  from  which  she  was  ousted  by  public 
sentiment  and  by  her  pastor.  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 
was  told  by  an  eye-witness  that  when  the  old  pastor 
of  the  church  passed  the  schoolhouse  where  this 
young  teacher  had  her  Sunday-school  for  a  season, 
he  shook  his  ivory-headed  cane  toward  the  building, 
and  exclaimed,  in  honest  indignation,  'You  imps  of 
Satan,  doing  the  Devil's  work  ! '  " 

Harriet  Lathrop  began  again,  and  this  time  on 
the  church  steps.  Her  struggling  Sunday-school 
had  not  yet  finally  crossed  the  threshold  of  the 
house  of  God.  But  the  little  school  survived.  It 
was  back  in  the  church  gallery  before  long.  Har- 
riet led  her  whole  family  to  Christ,  and  she  became 
the  wife  of  the  Rev.  Dr.  Miron  Winslow,  missionary 
to  Ceylon.  Mr.  Trumbull  attended  the  fiftieth  anni- 
versary of  her  Sunday-school,  and  heard  the  pastor 


Sunday-School  Field  Work  149 


pay  a  glowing  tribute  to  her  memory,  as  he  read  the 
names  of  twenty-six  ministers  and  missionaries  who 
had  gone  out  from  the  school. 

That  the  modern  Sunday-school  was  designed  pri- 
marily for  the  children  of  the  poor  is  a  fact  that  kept 
the  institution  from  reaching  all  whom  it  might  have 
reached  in  its  American  beginnings.  Dr.  Lyman 
Beecher  was  one  of  the  more  daring  spirits  who 
broke  away  from  the  prevailing  ideas  on  this  point, 
by  taking  his  own  children  to  Sunday-school,  and  by 
inducing  his  neighbors  to  do  likewise.  His  radical 
departure  from  the  custom  of  the  day  was  widely  dis- 
cussed, and  was  projected  in  its  results  far  beyond  his 
own  neighborhood,  until  throughout  the  land  the  chil- 
dren of  the  needy  well-to-do  were  having  privileges 
of  Bible  study  not  inferior  to  those  hitherto  accepted 
almost  exclusively  by  the  children  of  the  poor. 

When  the  more  far-sighted  and  faith-filled  Sunday- 
school  workers  of  those  early  days  found  themselves 
so  confronted  by  prejudice,  and  when  unfriendliness 
to  progress,  together  with  narrow  conceptions  of  the 
place  of  the  Sunday-school,  seemed  to  stand  squarely 
in  the  way  of  the  free  course  which  was  coveted  by 
many  for  the  educational  department  of  the  church, 
then  united  action  was  clearly  demanded.  A  litera- 
ture must  be  created  for  pupils  and  teachers  and  offi- 
cers. An  exchange  of  ideas  was  needed  by  all  in 
order  to  a  fuller  understanding  of  an  institution  which 
gave  promise  of  great  achievements. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  century  the  Rev.  Thomas 
H.  Gallaudet  had  been  able  to  discover  thirteen  books 
for  children,  including  such  productions  as  "  Goody 


150  Henry  Clay  Trumbtcll 


Two-Shoes,"  "  Blue  Beard,"  and  Who  Killed  Cock 
Robin?"  In  18 17  the  Philadelphia  society  men- 
tioned above  began  with  one  book,  Mrs.  Sherwood's 
"  Little  Henry  and  His  Bearer."  When  the  Ameri- 
can Sunday-School  Union  took  up  the  work  of  that 
society,  in  1824,  only  eighteen  small  books  of  the  sort 
appeared  in  its  catalog,  whereas  three  years  later  it 
was  announcing  fifty  volumes  suited  to  young  peo- 
ple's needs,  and  Sunday-school  libraries  were  every- 
where common.  As  early  as  1823  a  small  periodical 
for  pupils  was  started  in  New  Haven,  Connecticut, 
called  "  The  Teacher's  Offering,"  which  was  bought 
by  the  Sunday-School  Union,  and  issued  under  the" 
title  of  "  Youth's  Friend,"  attaining  a  circulation  of 
thirteen  thousand  monthly.  Again,  in  1824,  the 
American  Sunday -School  Magazine  was  issued 
monthly  by  the  Union  as  a  help  to  teachers  and 
other  workers.  Thus  a  beginning  was  made  in 
America  in  the  literature  of  the  Sunday-school, 
apart  from  that  devoted  mainly  to  lesson  study 
and  lesson  teaching. 

But  the  printed  page  was  not  enough  to  quicken 
into  co-ordinate  activity  the  uninstructed  and  widely- 
differing  elements.  In  1791  the  "Society  for  the 
Institution  and  Support  of  First  Day  or  Sunday- 
schools  in  the  City  of  Philadelphia  "  was  organized. 
In  1 8 16  two  societies  were  organized  in  New  York 
City,  the  "  Female  Union  Society  for  the  Promotion 
of  Sabbath-Schools,"  and  the  "  New  York  Sunday- 
School  Union."  In  18 17  the  foundations  of  the 
American  Sunday-School  Union  were  laid  in  "  The 
Sunday  and  Adult  School  Union  "  in  Philadelphia. 


Sunday-School  Field  Work  151 


Such  societies  stood  for  a  sentiment  which  found  its 
expression  in  unions  of  a  somewhat  different  charac- 
ter, in  city  and  county  and  state,  when  the  need  for 
mutual  stimulus  became  increasingly  apparent.  Dur- 
ing the  decade  1820-30  local  Sunday-school  conven- 
tions were  held,  as,  for  instance,  in  Hartford  County, 
Connecticut,  where  a  local  union  had  been  in  exist- 
ence since  18 18.  In  1829  Daviess  County,  Indiana, 
was  organized  for  this  work,  and  in  1832  the  first 
Indiana  State  Convention  was  held.  Some  four  hun- 
dred similar  organizations  were  reported  as  in  exist- 
ence by  1830;  and  two  years  later  the  first  National 
Sunday-School  Convention  met  in  New  York  City, 
assembling  again  in  Philadelphia  in  1833  as  an  ad- 
journed meeting. 

Convention  work,  state  and  national,  languished 
until  the  fifties,  although  in  1846  Stephen  Paxson, 
that  famous  and  beloved  missionary  of  the  Ameri- 
can Sunday-School  Union,  held  the  first  of  his  ever- 
widening  series  of  county  and  local  conventions,  in 
Winchester,  Illinois.  The  Maryland  Sunday-School 
Union  was  organized  in  1845;  ^  state  convention 
was  held  in  Massachusetts  in  1855;  another  for 
New  York,  at  Albany,  in  1857,  and  later  in  that  year 
the  first  Connecticut  State  Convention  was  held  in 
Hartford. 

In  March,  1857,  the  friends  of  Sunday-schools  in 
Hartford  and  New  Haven,  after  consultation  with 
others  in  various  parts  of  the  state,  called  a  conven- 
tion of  Sunday-school  teachers,  to  meet  in  Hartford 
for  two  days,  April  28,  29.  When  the  convention 
had  been  called  to  order  by  A.  G.  Hammond,  of 


152  Hen7^y  Clay  Tru7nbull 


Hartford,  Albert  Day,  of  that  city,  was  chosen  presi- 
dent; the  Hon.  Thomas  S.WilHams,  Henry  Trumbull's 
former  Sunday-school  teacher,  first  vice-president;  and 
first  in  the  list  of  secretaries  appears  the  name  of 
H.  Clay  Trumbull. 

At  this  gathering  Mr.  Trumbull  made  his  first  con- 
vention speech.  It  was  characteristic  of  him  that  he 
never  dealt  with  any  theme  from  the  purely  academic 
point  of  view.  He  spoke  and  wrote  out  of  experience, 
and,  having  a  vivid  memory  and  a  finely  adjusted 
sense  of  analogy,  he  could  take  a  theme,  turn  it  over 
and  over,  in  and  out,  analyzing  it,  comparing  it,  illus- 
trating it,  with  a  convincing  thoroughness  and  illu- 
minating picturesqueness  which  the  mere  theorist 
could  by  no  means  attain.  Upon  this  occasion,  Mr. 
Trumbull  spoke  in  defense  of  the  entertaining  of 
scholars  in  mission  schools,  as  over  against  the  com- 
mon opinion  that  nothing  entertaining  or  captivating 
could  possibly  be  rehgious. 

"Such  children,"  said  he,  "have  [at  the  start],  of 
course,  no  love  for  the  Sabbath  school,  and  no  desire 
to  be  content  there.  .  .  .  Abstain  from  mere  confer- 
ence-room commonplaces,  and  feel  you  must  interest 
your  scholars  at  any  cost  and  in  any  way.  'Why 
do  you  wish  to  leave  your  class  ? '  asked  Mr.  Hawley 
[the  city  missionary]  of  a  little  girl  who  requested  to 
be  put  under  the  care  of  another  teacher.  '  Because 
my  teacher  don't  talk  about  anything  but  the  les- 
son ! '  was  the  reply.  And  a  great  truth  was  con- 
veyed in  that  answer.  With  them  [the  mission 
children]  you  must  strike  out  from  the  beaten  track 
of  instruction,  and  lead  the  way  through  green  fields 


Stmday-School  Field  Work 


153 


to  the  strait  and  narrow  path  you  would  have  them 
eventually  take.  ...  In  all  our  Saviour's  teaching 
while  on  earth,  it  seemed  his  first  object  to  interest 
his  Hsteners.  He  told  charming  stories,  he  spoke  in 
beautiful  imagery,  he  presented  truth  in  attractive 
allegories,  '  and  without  a  parable  spake  he  not  unto 
them.'  .  .  .  He  understood  human  nature,  and,  by  his 
endeavors  to  interest  while  he  labored  to  profit,  gath- 
ered listening  crowds  about  him." 

One  of  the  speakers  at  this  convention  was  Albert 
Woodruff,  a  New  York  business  man  residing  in 
Brooklyn,  who  had  just  returned  from  a  tour  abroad. 
He  was  shocked  by  the  continental  desecration  of  the 
Sabbath,  and  in  Paris  he  began  a  Sunday-school  work 
which  grew  into  the  Foreign  Sunday-school  Associa- 
tion, a  movement  to  which  he  devoted  his  entire  time 
after  i860.  And  Mr.  Woodruff  was  to  be  a  factor  in 
the  winning  of  Henr^^  Clay  Trumbull  to  the  work  of 
the  Sunday-school  at  large.  He  himself  was  the 
superintendent  of  a  Brooklyn  mission  school,  which 
had  grown  in  four  years  from  a  small  school  of  elev^en 
members  to  a  great  institution  of  fifteen  hundred 
members.  He  knew  Sunday-schools,  and  he  be- 
lieved in  their  power  to  lift  a  community  out  of 
spiritual  darkness,  Mr.  Trumbull  won  his  attention 
as  a  young  man  who  was  intelligently  in  earnest  in 
this  field. 

The  Connecticut  State  Sabbath-school  Teachers' 
Association  was  organized  at  this  convention,  and 
Henry  Clay  Trumbull  was  appointed  secretary  for 
Hartford  County.  He  was  assigned  the  duty  of  pre- 
paring the  convention  report  for  printing,  and  of 


154  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


tabulating  a  statistical  report  on  the  basis  of  the  facts 
which  the  county  secretaries  were  to  secure  under  his 
direction.  To  his  work  under  these  assignments,  Mr. 
Trumbull's  most  significant  early  contributions  to 
Sunday-school  progress  are  directly  traceable. 

With  his  inherent  dislike  of  wasted  time,  he 
promptly  began  the  work  which  the  first  Connecti- 
cut State  Convention  had  given  him  to  do.  He 
was  on  new  ground  when  he  attempted  to  gather 
Sunday-school  statistics.  That,  however,  was  a  con- 
dition altogether  stimulating  and  agreeable  to  his 
inventive,  resourceful  mind. 

In  the  month  following  the  convention,  he  prepared 
and  sent  out  statistical  blanks  to  representative  Sun- 
day-school workers  in  each  town  in  the  state,  to 
county  secretaries,  and  to  superintendents  in  his  own 
county.  Three  months  later  the  complete  convention 
report,  including  the  statistics,  was  ready  for  publica- 
tion. 

He  had  managed  to  secure  reports  from  about 
half  the  schools  in  the  state,  and  the  facts  they  gave 
him  he  tabulated  with  systematic  clearness.  Here 
his  banking  and  engineering  experience  served  him 
well.  His  completed  report  gave  ninety-five  large 
pages  of  printed  matter,  comprising  the  gist  of  the 
convention  addresses,  and  the  details  of  the  sessions, 
all  of  which  he  had  noted  with  great  fulness,  although 
he  could  not  write  shorthand.  In  addition  to  these 
solid  pages  there  were  eleven  pages  of  statistics.  In 
these  figures  there  was  dynamite. 

His  report  included  the  name  of  the  town  ;  the  de- 
nomination of  the  school  reporting  ;  the  name  of  the 


Sunday-School  Field  Work 


155 


superintendent ;  the  number  of  scholars  under  eigh- 
teen and  over  eighteen  years  of  age  ;  the  average 
attendance  ;  the  number  of  church  members  in  the 
school  ;  the  number  of  conversions,  and  the  number 
of  deaths  in  the  past  year  ;  how  many  volumes  there 
were  in  the  library  ;  the  amount  of  regular  benevo- 
lences ;  and  answers  to  two  questions  of  special  inter- 
est at  that  time  :  Is  there  a  teachers' -meeting  for 
study  or  prayer?  Do  you  have  a  monthly  Sunday- 
school  concert? 

To  his  direct  reports  Mr.  Trumbull  added  such 
figures  as  the  government  census  afforded,  and  pre- 
pared a  careful  summary,  keeping  his  estimates  sepa- 
rate from  the  reported  figures.  Eleven  per  cent  of 
the  scholars  in  reporting  schools  were  church  mem- 
bers ;  and  out  of  the  40,074  scholars  in  these  schools, 
98 1  had  confessed  Christ  within  the  year.  But  the 
startling  fact — the  explosive — in  the  summary  was 
this  :  The  estimated  number  of  children  destitute  of 
Sunday-school  instruction  was  65,216,  a  little  more 
than  half  the  estimated  whole  number  of  children 
and  young  people  from  five  to  twenty  years  of  age 
residing  in  Connecticut. 

That  this  could  be  true  in  one  of  the  most  pro- 
gressive and  enlightened  communities  of  Puritan  foun- 
dation was  scouted  by  many,  yet  no  one  could  disprove 
Mr.  Trumbull's  general  conclusions.  No  one  else  had 
any  offset  to  his  facts,  other  than  local  opinion  by 
which  the  whole  state  could  not  fairly  be  judged. 
Some  were  wise  enough  to  put  aside  preconceived 
notions  of  religious  conditions  in  that  field,  and  to 
look  upon  the  statistics  as  reliable  and  compelling, 


156  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


and  irresistible  in  their  call  to  a  campaign  of  im- 
provement throughout  the  state.  And  there  is  no 
reason  to  suppose  that  Connecticut  was  behind  any 
other  state  in  the  Union  in  her  religious  condition. 
It  was  simply  that  the  conditions  there  were  becom- 
ing known,  while  other  states  were  yet  in  comparative 
ignorance  of  their  true  standing  in  this  respect. 

When  the  second  state  convention  met  in  New 
Haven,  on  June  i,  1858,  Mr.  Trumbull's  report  had 
fixed  itself  like  a  barbed  arrow  in  the  Connecticut 
conscience.  Though  he  had  been  obliged  to  resign 
as  secretary  for  Hartford  County  on  account  of  re- 
curring ill-health,  he  was  able  to  report  that  he  had 
visited  during  the  year  every  town  in  the  county, 
some  of  them  again  and  again,  and  had  found  that 
the  first  convention  had  brought  about  an  increased 
activity  and  interest.  A  gain  of  two  thousand  schol- 
ars in  the  county  had  been  secured  during  the  year, 
which  was  almost  equal  to  the  gain  for  the  previous 
year  in  the  two  hundred  and  twenty-seven  schools  re- 
porting throughout  the  state.  This  was  done  by  the 
organizing  of  a  county  union  and  by  the  districting  of 
the  field  for  visitation.  Similar  reports  came  from 
other  counties.    The  state  was  aroused. 

Strong  as  were  the  addresses  from  Theodore  L. 
Cuyler,  R.  G.  Pardee  of  the  New  York  Sunday-school 
Union,  and  Governor  Buckingham,  the  convention 
mind  was  chiefly  bent  on  doing  something  about  that 
Trumbull  report.  Mr.  Pardee  asserted  that  he  doubted 
if  any  other  state  in  the  Union  could  show  more  than 
one-third  of  her  children  in  the  Sunday-school,  while 
Connecticut  could  now  show  more  than  half  But 


Sunday-School  Field  Work  157 


the  Rev.  F.  A.  Spencer  of  New  Hartford,  as  a  Con- 
necticut resident,  was  more  impressed  with  the  needs 
than  with  any  present  achievements,  and  he  urged 
the  necessity  of  doing  something  for  the  rural  dis- 
tricts. The  Rev.  Dr.  Button  of  New  Haven  read  a 
letter  from  the  Rev.  Dr.  Bond  of  Norwich  suggesting 
that  the  State  Sabbath  School  Teachers'  Association 
employ  a  missionary  to  go  through  the  state,  to 
establish  new  schools  and  to  quicken  interest  in  those 
already  existing.  Then  Dr.  Beebe,  the  chairman  of 
the  Central  Committee,  told  of  the  great  demand  for 
his  own  services  throughout  the  state,  as  indicating 
the  readiness  of  communities  to  be  helped,  and  he 
moved  that  the  whole  subject  be  referred  to  a  special 
committee  to  report  the  next  morning. 

This  report  came  at  the  time  appointed,  from  the 
Business  Committee,  who  urged  "an  accurate  and 
continued  survey  of  the  Sabbath-schools  of  the  state, 
and  a  proper  attention  to  the  wants  of  the  neglected 
portions  of  Connecticut,"  and  asked  that  the  Central 
and  Finance  Committees  be  constituted  a  Board  of 
Managers,  who  should  be  empowered  to  "  employ 
and  pay  any  person  or  persons  who  should,  in  their 
estimation,  be  required  to  carry  out  their  plans  for 
the  advancement  of  the  Sabbath-school  cause  in  the 
state." 

Soon  after  the  convention  adjourned,  the  board 
met  twice,  and,  after  much  consultation  with  pastors 
and  others,  decided  to  put  a  missionary^  in  the  field. 
Then  two  questions  confronted  them — the  man  and 
the  money.  The  first  was  the  more  easily  settled,  so 
far  as  their  choice  was  concerned.    The  second  was 


158  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


settled  when  the  American  Sunday-School  Union 
came  forward  and  offered  to  assume  the  entire  ex- 
pense of  the  undertaking,  while  conceding  to  the 
managers  the  nomination  of  the  missionary  and  the 
general  direction  of  his  labors." 

Not  only  were  the  Connecticut  Sunday-school 
authorities  eager  to  secure  Mr.  Trumbull  for  this 
aggressive  effort,  but  others  outside  the  state  were 
alive  to  the  situation  and  its  problems.  Mr.  Albert 
Woodruff  was  in  attendance  at  the  Hartford  and  the 
New  Haven  conventions,  and  as  he  heard  the  reports 
and  discussions  he  made  up  his  mind  that  if  the  Con- 
necticut brethren  were  going  forward  with  a  campaign 
of  Sunday-school  extension  and  improvement,  young 
Henry  Clay  Trumbull  was  the  man  for  them. 

Of  Mr.  Woodruff's  thought  Mr.  Trumbull  had  no 
intimation  whatever,  until  the  Missionary  Secretary 
of  the  American  Sunday-School  Union  called  upon 
him  with  a  letter  of  introduction  from  Mr.  Wood- 
ruff. At  once  the  proposal  was  made  that  the  young 
mission-school  worker  should  enter  the  state  field. 
To  Mr.  Trumbull  that  was  a  startling  suggestion.  But 
he  could  not  refuse  to  consider  it  His  Christian  ex- 
perience had  taught  him  already  that  a  call  of  God  to 
any  duty  need  not  surprise  any  child  of  His,  and  he 
had  chosen  to  keep  no  will  of  his  own  when  he  gave 
himself  wholly  to  Christ.  He  now  took  counsel  with 
friends  ;  he  prayed  for  light,  and  at  length  saw  what 
he  must  do.  He  accepted  the  call,  and  entered  upon 
his  Sunday-school  missionary  work  on  September  i, 
1858. 

From  1850-60  the  American  Sunday-School  Union 


Sunday-School  Field  Work  159 


had  utilized  as  the  main  force  of  its  missionaries  Chris- 
tian students  from  colleges  and  seminaries,  who  could 
give  their  summers  to  the  work,  under  the  super- 
vision of  a  few  permanent  missionaries,  the  whole 
number  varying  from  one  hundred  to  three  hun- 
dred and  twenty-four  each  year.  In  1854-55,  under 
this  plan,  2,440  new  schools  were  organized  in 
destitute  places  in  twenty-five  states,  territories,  and 
provinces. 

But  national  growth  required  different  methods,  on 
a  more  permanent  basis.  After  1858  the  student  force 
was  discontinued  for  the  time,  collecting-agents  were 
dispensed  with,  and  the  operations  of  the  Society  on 
stronger  lines  were  enlarged  to  meet  the  new  condi- 
tions of  immigration,  additional  territory,  and  the  in- 
crease in  debasing  literature. 

It  was  at  this  moment  of  newly  determined  aggress- 
iveness on  the  part  of  the  Union  that  Mr.  Trumbull 
flung  himself  into  the  work.  And  that  expression  is 
used  advisedly.  He  at  once  sent  out  this  letter  to 
Sunday-school  workers  : 

At  the  request  of  the  State  Association  of  Sabbath  School 
Teachers  I  have  been  appointed  by  the  American  Sunday- 
School  Union  as  Sabbath-school  Missionary  for  Connecticut, 
and  am  to  devote  my  whole  time  to  the  interests  of  the  Sab- 
bath-school cause  in  this  state. 

My  work  is  in  no  sense  a  denominational  one,  neither  am  I 
a  collecting-agent,  the  only  object  of  my  appointment  being 
the  increase  and  improvement  of  Sabbath-schools  within  our 
borders. 

I  am  to  travel  through  Connecticut,  and  if  I  can  be  of  service 
in  your  neighborhood,  either  in  organizing  new  schools  or  in 
visiting  those  already  established,  I  will  thank  you  to  in- 
form me. 


i6o  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


I  shall  be  pleased  to  learn  of  any  gathering  of  the  friends 
of  Sabbath-schools  or  the  meeting  of  local  unions  in  your 
vicinity,  and  it  will  at  all  times  gratify  me  to  hear  from  you 
in  relation  to  your  own  field  of  labors  or  observation,  while 
such  information  as  I  can  give,  personally  or  by  letter,  to 
aid  those-  engaged  in  Sabbath-school  work,  I  shall  be  happy 
to  impart. 

Mr.  Trumbull  resigned  at  once  from  the  Morgan 
Street  Mission  and  from  the  State  Republican  Com- 
mittee. For  the  first  ten  days  of  his  incumbency  he 
spent  much  of  his  time  in  preparing  the  report  of  the 
recent  state  convention,  and  in  sending  letters  to  per- 
sons "who  talk  most  in  the  convention  of  our  state 
destitution,  asking  to  'be  informed  as  to  the  localities 
where  is  greatest  need  of  special  labor.  In  this  way," 
he  wrote,  I  hope  to  gain  a  better  understanding  of 
the  wants  of  the  community."  His  engagements  for 
Sunday-school  addresses  began  to  pour  in  upon  him, 
and  of  these  and  his  office  work  he  wrote  :  In  such 
ways  I  am  endeavoring  to  do  something  while  prepar- 
ing to  do  more." 

In  the  statistics  of  1857,  ^"^^Y  227  schools  out  of 
659,  the  estimated  number  in  the  state,  had  reported 
their  figures.  After  the  convention  of '58,  Mr.  Trum- 
bull had  secured  reports  from  566  schools.  From 
these  reports  it  was  deduced  that  sixty-three  thousand 
children  in  Connecticut,  between  four  and  eighteen 
years  of  age,  were  not  in  the  Sunday-school,  out  of  a 
population  of  school  age  of  1 1 5,000.  Not  less  than 
eight  thousand  children  in  that  year  had  publicly 
confessed  Christ.  But  Mr.  Trumbull  was  intent  upon 
the  sixty-three  thousand,  and  he  proposed  to  bring  as 
many  as  possible  of  that  number  into  Sunday-school. 


Sunday 'School  Field  Work  i6i 


On  September  29,  he  wrote  to  the  missionary  sec- 
retary : 

My  correspondence  is  already  quite  extensive,  and  increas- 
ingly so.  Inquiries  of  every  kind  in  connection  with  Sunday- 
school  work  are  pouring  in  upon  me  from  all  parts  of  the  state. 

And  again  on  October  14  : 

Before  the  month  of  September  had  closed,  I  was  already 
engaged  for  each  Sabbath  in  October,  and  also  for  each  avail- 
able weekday,  with  but  two  exceptions. 

My  work  opens  even  more  pleasantly  than  I  hoped,  and  I 
have  every  reason  to  thank  God  and  take  courage.  Perhaps 
you  may  like  to  have  upon  paper,  one  or  two  little  incidents 
of  my  first  month' s  labor,  to  which  I  alluded  verbally  when 
we  met  in  New  York. 

I  reached  home  on  Saturday,  the  25th  ult.,  after  a  hard 
week' s  work,  too  late  to  enable  me  to  go  out  that  day.  As, 
however,  I  did  not  wish  to  lose  the  Sabbath,  I  started  early  on 
the  morning  of  the  Lord's  Day  with  the  full  intention  of  visit- 
ing Ellington  in  Tolland  County,  where,  however,  I  had  no 
appointment  made.  I  drove  along  a  short  distance,  when  I 
became  strongly  impressed  with  the  idea  that  it  was  my  duty 
to  turn  in  another  direction  toward  the  little  town  of  Bolton. 
And  although  I  had  no  intention  of  going  elsewhere  than  to 
Ellington  when  I  left  home,  so  firm  had  my  convictions  of 
providential  leadings  toward  Bolton  become  that  I  turned  my 
horse,  and  drove  on  to  that  place.  I  reached  the  house  of  the 
minister  of  the  Congregational  Church  just  as  he  came  out  with 
his  wife,  bound  to  the  house  of  worship.  Seeing  me  drive  up, 
he  called  my  name  in  tones  of  delight,  and  coming  to  the  car- 
riage laid  his  hand  upon  me  with  the  exclamation  :  "Brother 
Trumbull,  the  Lord  sent  you  here  ;  you  have  come  most  op- 
portunely." On  entering  the  church  with  him,  he  announced 
my  presence  to  the  congregation  somewhat  on  this  wise  : 
"Brethren,  you  know  I  have  been  preaching  a  series  of  ser- 
mons before  different  classes  of  my  people.  I  have  preached 
to  the  fathers  and  mothers,  the  husbands  and  wives,  and  the 


1 62  Hemy  Clay  Trumbull 


young  people,  and  to-day  I  have  promised  a  sermon  to  the 
children  of  my  flock.  I  am  to  leave  home  now  for  a  number 
of  weeks,  and  I  wanted  the  children  to  have  a  good  talk  to 
them  before  I  went  away,  but  a  funeral  on  Friday  and  other 
duties  yesterday  prevented  me  from  preparing  the  sermon  I 
was  to  preach  to  the  children,  and  I  arose  this  morning  a  good 
deal  in  doubt  as  to  what  I  should  do.  I  prayed  over  the 
matter  earnestly,  and  then  with  rather  a  heavy  heart  I  opened 
my  door,  when  there  drove  up  Brother  Trumbull.  The  Lord 
sent  him.  He  will  talk  to  the  parents  this  morning,  and  this 
afternoon  he  will  address  the  children."  At  the  minister's 
request,  I  addressed  the  people  particularly  with  reference  to 
the  work  of  the  American  Sunday-School  Union,  and  of  course, 
coming  to  them  under  such  circumstances,  I  had  their  willing 
ears. 

I  find  in  many  portions  of  our  state  considerable  Sunday- 
school  destitution  to  exist,  and  I  could  very  pleasantly  and 
profitably  without  doubt  spend  more  or  less  time  in  these 
destitute  localities,  gathering  the  children,  and  establishing 
Sunday-schools,  but  I  feel  that  the  work  I  have  in  hand  is  for 
many  years  to  come,  and  that  I  must  begin  with  a  thorough 
and  complete  survey  of  my  field,  laying  broad  and  deep  foun- 
dations for  a  substantial  and  permanent  structure  hereafter  to 
be  reared. 

In  the  following  month,  Mr.  Trumbull  had  gained 
in  experience  and  knowledge,  and  in  determination 
to  get  results.  He  wrote  to  the  Philadelphia  head- 
quarters on  October  27  : 

The  Sunday-school  interest  in  this  state  is  manifestly  in- 
creasing, but  I  find  still  many  dark  corners,  and  if  I  live  until 
next  spring,  I  can,  I  think,  astonish  the  good  people  of  Con- 
necticut by  the  developments  as  to  the  moral  destitution  of 
some  localities,  and  the  state  of  torpor  in  which  many  of  our 
large  churches  ai:e  lying. 

In  his  first  year  of  missionary  work  Mr.  Trumbull 
visited  eighty  of  the  hundred  and  sixty-one  towns  in 


Sunday-School  Field  Work  163 


the  state,  traveling  more  than  ten  thousand  miles  in 
that  field  alone,  visiting,  or  meeting  at  union  gather- 
ings, more  than  two  hundred  and  fifty  schools  of  ten 
denominations,  writing  more  than  a  thousand  letters, 
and  making  about  three  hundred  public  addresses. 
His  one  thought  was  the  saving  of  the  sixty  thousand, 
counting  no  labor  too  great,  no  obstacles  as  real 
obstacles  in  the  achieving  of  his  aim. 

But  these  plain  statistics  of  the  young  missionaiy's 
beginnings  tell  nothing  of  the  day-by-day  self-sacrifice 
which  was  so  great  a  joy  to  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 
even  then.  In  the  starting  of  the  first  Sunday-school 
that  he  founded,  there  is  an  earnest  of  what  his  God- 
led  determination  was  to  accomplish  through  nearly  a 
half-century  of  Christian  service. 

Tolland  County  was  the  smallest  in  the  state.  It 
was  a  manufacturing  community,  with  no  cities  and 
with  only  thirteen  towns,  wherein  were  to  be  found 
twenty-nine  Sunday-schools.  On  a  bitter  December 
Mr.  Trumbull  started  to  keep  a  series  of  appoint- 
ments in  that  region.  He  kept  the  engagements,  but 
not  because  it  was  easy  to  do  so,  or  because  the  days 
were  favorable,  from  the  ordinaiy  view-point.  He 
thus  reported  the  tour  to  the  home  office  of  the 
Union  : 

On  Sabbath  last,  during  a  very  severe  ice-storm,  I  rode  in 
an  open  conveyance  a  circuit  of  forty  miles,  addressed  four 
assemblies  in  three  different  townS;  and  was  privileged  on  this 
jaunt — with  our  secretary  of  Tolland  County  [E.  B.  Preston,  a 
sketch  of  whose  life  Mr.  Trumbull  wrote] — to  establish  a  new 
Sunday-school  in  a  manufacturing  village  [Mansfield]  where 
one  was  much  needed,  there  l)eing  none  within  some  miles. 
I  was  then  seven  hours  in  the  ojien  air  in  a  driving  cold  storm 


164  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


that  day,  and  was  unable  to  get  dinner  only  at  9^  P.  M. 
On  Tuesday,  with  Brother  Chidlaw,  I  rode  sixteen  miles  over 
the  hills  in  the  early  cold  morning,  and  this  forenoon  I  re- 
turned over  the  same  road  in  an  open  wagon,  through  a  pour- 
ing rain.  In  addition  I  have  ridden  over  thirty  miles  in  the 
cars  to-day,  and  am  now  hurrying  this  letter  for  the  mail. 

I  love  this  work  with  my  whole  heart,  and  I  implore  God  to 
strengthen  and  help  me  in  it.  May  my  labors  be  blessed  to 
the  welfare  of  some  of  the  wandering  lambs  of  His  fold  ! 

That  was  a  busy  week  for  Mr.  Trumbull — so  busy- 
that  he  could  find  time  for  none  but  imperative 
duties.  At  its  close,  he  glanced  over  the  doings  of 
its  crowded  hours,  and  he  saw  with  conviction  that 
which  many  another  driven  man  could  see  if  he 
would,  as  he  wrote  earnestly  to  the  missionary 
secretary  : 

I  have  found  time  to  pray  much  the  past  week,  and  to  this 
I  ascribe  more  than  to  my  other  work.  May  God  continue  to 
help  me  ! 

In  all  his  efforts  to  be  of  service  to  others,  Henry 
Clay  Trumbull  sought  points  of  agreement,  rather 
than  points  of  difference,  as  he  tried  to  lead  men  into 
any  new  course  of  thinking  or  living.  His  work  in 
Connecticut  demanded  this  in  no  small  degree,  for 
he  moved  where  precedent  had  planted  prehistoric 
footsteps  in  once  plastic  rock,  a  trail  from  which  men 
of  certain  types  are  not  easily  turned  aside. 

Denominational  lines  were  sharply  drawn.  Mr. 
Trumbull  must  arouse  no  antagonism  on  the  score 
of  any  favoring  of  one  denomination  as  apart  from 
another,  and  this  just  then  was  no  easy  task.  But  he 
did  find  it  easy  to  adapt  himself  to  denominational 
peculiarities,  and  without  yielding  any  principle  of 


Sunday-School  Field  Work 


honorable  social  adjustment.  In  a  district  in  New 
Haven  Count\^  where  there  was  no  Sunday-school, 
and  a  closed  Methodist  church,  he  gathered  workers 
for  a  new  school  to  be  held  in  the  Methodist  house  of 
worship.  One  of  the  workers,  an  elderly  woman, 
said  to  a  helper  of  Mr.  TrumbuU's  : 

''What  church  does  Mr.  Trumbull  go  to?  " 

*'  I  believe  he  goes  to  the  Congregational  Church," 
was  the  reply. 

He  can  call  himself  what  he  pleases.  He's  a 
Methodist  at  heart,"  responded  the  good  woman, 
with  enthusiastic  conviction. 

In  Windham  County  he  had  a  somewhat  similar 
experience,  when  trying  to  revive  a  closed  Baptist 
Sunday-school.  He  spent  considerable  time  in  the 
homes  of  the  people.  He  was  urged  to  settle  there 
as  pastor  of  the  church.  He  was  told  that  they  had 
paid  a  former  pastor  as  much  as  three  hundred  dol- 
lars a  year,  but  they  offered  to  make  it  three  hundred 
and  fifty  if  he  would  come. 

Mr.  Trumbull  devoted  a  large  part  of  his  time  in 
the  first  year  or  two  of  missionary  ser\ace  to  vigorous 
resuscitation  of  the  schools  that  had  almost  perished 
in  the  snows  of  winter.  With  the  appearance  of  the 
first  frost  on  the  bleak  hills  of  Connecticut  Sunday- 
schools  were  closed  in  scores  of  communities,  not  be- 
cause the  weather  was  so  dangerously  cold,  but  because 
the  school  had  always  closed  in  winter.  What  was 
the  use  in  keeping  it  open  when  only  a  half-dozen 
would  come?  To  be  sure,  the  district  school  could 
be  kept  up,  but  that  was  a  different  matter. 

No  one  who  reads  Sundaj'-school  histor\'  can  f  lil  to 


1 66  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


be  impressed  with  the  ripe  old  age  of  almost  all  the 
newest"  Sunday-school  problems.  As  early  as  1828 
the  secretary  of  the  Hartford  County  Sabbath-School 
Union  reported  that  nearly  all  the  schools  in  his  field 
had  promised  to  continue  during  the  approaching 
winter.  Then  he  remarks  confidently:  **The  day 
when  it  was  necessary  to  resort  to  argument  to  prove 
the  expediency  of  this  practise  is  past.  The  number 
of  successful  experiments  recently  made  sweeps  away 
every  objection.  If  the  time  has  not  already  come, 
we  do  not  believe  it  is  more  than  one  year  distant, 
when  the  dissolution  of  a  school  at  the  approach  of 
cold  weather  will  tell  loudly  of  a  want  of  holy  zeal  in 
the  cause  of  Christ" 

Thirty-one  years  after  this  hopeful  outlook,  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Daniel  Curry  and  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 
were  appointed  by  the  state  convention  of  September 
28-30,  1859,  to  send  out  a  letter  to  about  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  of  the  more  than  seven  hundred  Sun- 
day-schools in  Connecticut,  urging  the  abandonment 
of  the  winter  closing  habit.  After  two  years  of  spe- 
cial emphasis  on  this  reform,  forty  schools  became 
thawed  out.  The  recollection  of  this  experience  with 
indifference  never  ceased  to  stir  Mr.  Trumbull's  right- 
eous indignation.  In  an  unguarded  moment,  I  once 
asked  him  if  he  could  see  any  reason  why  a  city  Sun- 
day-school should  close  in  summer, — the  problem  as 
it  affects  cities  like  Philadelphia  or  New  York. 

**  Close  in  summer  !  "  exclaimed  the  Doctor.  Then, 
more  vehemently,  "  Close  in  summer  !  Yes,  I  can  un- 
derstand why  some  schools  ought  to  close  in  summer, 
but  I  don!  t  see  why  they  should  ever  open  again  ! " 


Sunday-School  Field  Work  167 


One  may  imagine  that  Henry  Trumbull  at  twenty- 
nine  did  not  allow  a  lazy  superintendent  to  be  per- 
fectly content  in  his  laziness,  if  the  young  missionary 
could  get  at  him. 

Mr.  Trumbull  began  to  write  for  The  Sunday  School 
Times  in  the  first  month  of  that  paper's  existence,  his 
first  article  appearing  in  the  issue  of  January  15,  1859, 
having  for  its  subject  the  house-to-house  visitation  of 
London,  England,  in  a  single  day, — April  20,  1856. 
The  Sunday  School  Times  was  started  as  a  weekly 
helper  for  workers  by  the  American  Sunday-school 
Union,  on  January  i,  1859,  ^vith  Professor  John  S. 
Hart  as  its  editor.  Mr.  Trumbull  not  only  wrote  for 
it  constantly,  but  in  these  early  days  he  also  busied 
himself  in  securing  subscriptions  for  it. 

His  work  was  crowding  in  upon  him  from  all  sides. 
There  were  many  demands  outside  the  busy  round  of 
his  state  missionary  duties.  Again  and  again  he  ad- 
dressed the  inmates  of  the  state's  prison  at  Wethers- 
field,  where,  upon  one  occasion,  he  saw  the  youthful 
face  of  a  boyhood  acquaintance  looking  up  at  him  as 
he  spoke, — a  living  illustration  of  the  unreached  who 
should  be  reached  by  the  Sunday-school. 

He  attended  the  National  Sunday-school  Conven- 
tion in  Jayne's  Hall,  Philadelphia,  on  February  22-24, 
1859  ;  he  was  chosen  the  first  secretary  of  that  con- 
vention, and  was  entertained  by  George  H.  Stuart 
during  the  course  of  his  visit.  Three  months  later 
Mr.  Trumbull  attended  the  anniversary  meeting  of  the 
American  Sunday-school  Union  in  Tremont  Temple, 
Boston,  and  there  addressed  a  great  audience  on  the 
neglected  regions  of  New  PLngland.     In  the  following 


1 68  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


month,  he  was  a  prominent  speaker  and  co-worker 
with  the  local  officers  in  the  Mercer  County  Conven- 
tion in  Trenton,  New  Jersey,  and  again  in  the  same 
month,  on  June  22-23,  he  took  an  active  part  in 
the  fifth  convention  of  Massachusetts  Sunday-school 
Teachers  at  Northampton,  going  within  a  few  days  to 
the  first  Maine  State  Convention  at  Portland  on  the 
28th  and  29th,  where  he  aided  in  the  organization  of 
the  State  Sunday-school  Association.  And  on  Octo- 
ber 25  he  attended  the  first  New  Hampshire  State 
Sunday-school  Convention  at  Manchester.  Thus  his 
Sunday-school  horizon  was  rapidly  widening. 

Mr.  Trumbull  could  not  entirely  withdraw  from 
politics,  nor  did  he  wish  to.  He  was  often  in  politi- 
cal meetings  at  home  and  elsewhere.  His  friends 
could  not  forget  the  part  he  had  taken  in  stirring  the 
people  by  his  oratory,  and  in  canvassing  his  county 
with  unprecedented  thoroughness,  for  individual 
voters,  in  the  campaign  of  1856.  On  April  2,  1859, 
he  wrote  to  the  missionary  secretary  : 

I  have  just  been  strongly  urged  to  give  myself  to  politics, 
and  am  now  offered  $1,500  per  annum  to  act  as  permanent 
chairman  of  the  Republican  State  Committee,  to  supervise 
party  movements  in  Connecticut.  So  if  you  wish  to  reduce 
the  number  of  "supernumeraries,"  here  is  an  opportunity; 
but  I  would  not  leave  this  field  for  three  thousand  per  annum 
in  any  other  work. 

The  allurements  of  financial  gain  outside  his  sphere 
of  duty  were  singularly  active  at  the  time  of  Mr.  Trum- 
bull's early  Sunday-school  work,  but  he  was  not  to  be 
turned  aside  from  his  duty.  An  older  brother  mission- 
ar)%  who  had  yielded  to  the  plausible  arguments  that 


Sunday-School  Field  Work  169 


to  some  ears  ring  true  whenever  the  dollar  is  struck, 
had  real  pity  for  Trumbull  in  his  comparatively  mea- 
ger money  support 

''Trumbull  will  find,"  said  he,  "that  he  can  do  a 
great  deal  better  in  mercantile  pursuits  than  in  this 
agency." 

*'I  can  only  say,"  answered  the  young  missionary, 
I  hope  Trumbull  will  '  trust  in  the  Lord  and  do 
good '  all  the  days  of  his  life,  and,  if  so,  I  doubt  not 
he  will  be  fed." 

For  some  years  the  Congregational  General  Asso- 
ciation had  been  considering  the  desirability  of  a  more 
thorough  evangelization  of  Connecticut,  and  in  the 
summer  of  this  crowded  year,  having  determined  to 
explore  the  field,  the  Home  Evangelization  Committee 
asked  Mr.  Trumbull  to  assist  them.  When,  through 
breaking  health,  he  was  obliged  to  withdraw  from  the 
more  aggressive  duties  of  that  effort,  he  was  neverthe- 
less able  to  co-operate  with  the  Committee,  while  the 
work  was  carried  on  with  conspicuous  energ}^  and 
thoroughness  by  the  Rev.  Leonard  Woolsey  Bacon, 
then  of  Litchfield,  thenceforward  a  hfe-long  friend  of 
Mr.  Trumbull. 

His  study  of  the  Sunday-school  field,  as  well  as  his 
work  with  this  Committee,  led  Trumbull  to  a  con- 
clusion which  he  defended  vigorously  to  the  end  of 
his  days.  He  held  that  in  country  districts  was  to  be 
found  a  greater  depth  of  moral  and  spiritual  depravity 
than  in  the  cities,  for  he  had  observed  that  the  re- 
straints and  conventions  of  city  life,  its  manifold 
activities,  its  sharp  competition,  kept  individuals 
from  much  of  the   unspeakable  degeneracy  which 


170  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


he  found  in  the  laxer  and  loneher  Hfe  of  rural 
neighborhoods.  He  found  ample  missionary  motive 
in  the  heartbreaking  conditions  he  discovered  among 
unevangeHzed  country  regions,  where  the  children 
were  pitifully  ignorant  of  the  simplest  moral  stand- 
ards of  family  and  social  life.  Of  course  Mr.  Trum- 
bull was  met  with  hot  denial  on  the  part  of  those 
who  had  never  had  his  opportunities  for  observation 
in  city  and  in  country,  but  he  had  seen  for  himself, 
and  there  were  enough  who  agreed  with  him  to 
bring  about  a  right  emphasis  on  rural  mission 
work. 

Now  all  these  activities  were  not  too  great  for  a 
man  of  Mr.  Trumbull's  energy,  but  he  was  making 
one  vital  mistake.  He  was  observing  no  Sabbath. 
He  believed  that  because  he  was  in  the  Lord's  work, 
he  could  keep  at  it  without  the  sabbatical  rest  re- 
quired of  men  in  secular  pursuits.  He  lived  to  suffer 
from  this  course,  and  to  see  the  error  of  it. 

In  the  first  seven  months  of  his  missionary  work 
he  traveled  more  than  five  thousand  miles,  made  one 
hundred  and  eighty-two  addresses,  and  wrote  about 
six  hundred  letters,  usually  not  mere  notes,  but  full, 
explanatory,  urgent,  tactful  letters,  written  with  copy- 
book neatness.  How  many  personal  calls  he  made 
on  families  no  one  knows,  but  he  would  frequently 
visit  twenty  fanlilies  in  an  afternoon  when  organizing 
a  Sunday-school. 

On  April  14,  1859,  he  failed  for  the  first  time  to 
keep  a  missionary  appointment,  because  he  was  too 
ill  to  leave  his  bed.  He  wrote  only  three  letters  that 
day.    The  next  morning  found  him  on  the  six-thirty 


Sunday-School  Field  Work 


171 


train  for  Willimantic.  Thence  he  took  stage  to 
Chaplin  "Depot,"  walked  to  Chaplin  Center,  made 
a  call  on  a  minister,  returned  to  the  station,  thence 
on  horseback  to  Westminster,  thence  to  Willimantic, 
and  was  in  Hartford  in  the  evening  in  time  to  attend 
a  meeting  of  the  managers  of  the  city  Sunday-school 
Union.  A  few  weeks  later,  having  spent  the  day  in 
bed,  he  roused  himself  to  make  five  calls  and  to  write 
four  letters  by  way  of  rest  from  his  labors. 

Mr.  George  Langdon,  of  Plymouth,  tells  of  a  typi- 
cal day  spent  with  Mr.  Trumbull  : 

"  One  fine  Sabbath  morning  in  spring  we  started 
out  for  work.  We  drove  six  miles  and  organized  a 
new  school  (a  canvass  having  been  made)  in  the 
ball-room  of  a  building  formerly  used  as  a  tavern. 
This  has  since  become  an  organized  church  with  a 
chapel  of  its  own.  Then  we  drove  two  miles,  where 
we  reorganized  a  school  that  had  stopped  for  the  win- 
ter. Next  a  drive  of  six  miles  to  attend  a  general 
Sunday-school  service  in  a  village  church.  Then  a 
drive  of  eight  miles  to  a  mission-school  service  held 
at  four  o'clock.  As  we  were  riding  home  in  the  edge 
of  the  evening  the  spire  of  the  Congregational  Church 
in  Bristol  came  in  sight.     Mr.  Trumbull  exclaimed  : 

"'Why  did  we  not  make  an  appointment  for  a 
service  there  this  evening  ?  ' 

"  I  was  ready  to  go  home,  and  there  were  seven 
miles  more  to  go  ;  but  the  suggestion  stimulated  me 
in  after  years  to  make  the  best  use  possible  of  the 
Sabbath  days." 

But  Mr.  Trumbull  had  no  Sabbath  whatever.  Every 
day  in  the  week  was  filled  with  appointments.    On  a 


172  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


single  Sunday  he  visited  seven  Sunday-schools  in  Hart- 
ford, and  addressed  a  large  meeting  in  the  evening. 
It  was  not  until  he  had  been  more  than  a  year  in  his 
missionary  field  that  he  spent  a  Sunday  at  home,  and 
then  he  did  so  because  he  had  begun  to  break  down, 
mentally  and  physically.  But  on  the  following  day 
he  wrote  eight  letters,  visited  three  towns  in  Massa- 
chusetts, made  five  calls,  and  addressed  a  union  gath- 
ering of  Sunday-school  workers  in  the  evening. 

In  November,  Mr.  Trumbull  was  ordered  by  his 
physician.  Dr.  Hunt,  to  stop  work.  He  did  make 
the  attempt,  speaking  fewer  times  on  Sunday,  and 
getting  rest  when  he  could.  Then,  while  he  was 
mentally  broken  and  confused,  his  daughter,  the  first 
of  his  children,  and  as  yet  an  only  child,  was  taken 
violently  ill  with  scarlet  fever.  Mrs.  Trumbull  was  in 
constant  attendance  upon  her,  and  Mr.  Trumbull  re- 
mained at  home  as  much  as  he  could,  racked  with 
pain  and  anxiety.  When  the  fever  had  passed,  and 
convalescence  was  well  advanced,  the  broken  law 
of  God-ordained  expediency  began  to  be  mended, 
and  with  the  dawn  of  a  new  light  upon  Christian 
Sabbath-keeping,  the  first  month  of  the  new  year 
brought  a  new  joy,  another  daughter.  While  the 
work  that  Mr.  Trumbull  continued  to  do  was  no  less 
strenuous  and  fervent,  thenceforth  he  kept  a  sabbath 
resting-time  sacred  and  apart  from  all  other  time  or 
times  in  his  calendar.  To  the  end  of  his  days  Mon- 
day was  his  resting-time,  week  by  week.  On  that 
day  no  real  work  would  he  do,  because  he  had  learned 
at  great  cost  that  even  a  Christian  must  keep  the 
sabbath. 


ENTERING  ARMY  LIFE 


To  become  soldiers,  you  yielded  home  with 
all  its  comforts  and  delights,  sacrificed  your  per- 
sonal ease  and  security  ;  left  the  side  of  loved 
ones,  gave  up  all  that  you  had  before  enjoyed 
and  prized  for  this  life,  and  entered  knowingly 
upon  a  course  of  hardship,  of  privation,  of  toil, 
and  of  danger.  Your  patriotism  cost  you  some- 
thing. .  .  .  For  your  generous  sacrifice  you  de- 
serve the  same  praise  as  was  the  due  of  Reuben 
and  of  Gad  when  they  said,  "Our  little  ones, 
our  wives,  our  flocks,  and  all  our  cattle,  shall 
be  there  in  the  cities  of  Gilead:  but  thy  servants 
will  pass  over,  every  man  armed  for  war,  before 
the  Lord  to  battle." 

What  though  dear  ones  were  to  be  left  alone 
in  sadness  and  sorrow  ?  What  though  position 
and  property  were  to  be  yielded  ?  What  though 
army  life  was  to  be  a  life  of  privatioji  and  peril  ? 
What  though  your  food  was  to  be  poor  and 
scanty,  your  bed  the  hard  ground,  your  home 
the  open  air  in  sunshine  or  in  storm,  and  your 
comrades  those  who  might  be  least  congenial  to 
you  ?  What  though  you  were  to  have  your  privi- 
leges of  speech  and  action  abridged,  and  be 
forced  to  submit  to  most  rigorous  discipline  or 
to  harshest  military  rule  ?  What  though  you 
were  to  pine  away  in  hospital  or  to  lie  bleeding 
on  the  field  of  battle  ;  to  suffer  on  for  three  long 
years,  or  to  die  in  the  first  fight Anything, 
everything,  you  would  give  or  do  for  your  coun- 
try— your  country,  dearer  to  you  than  home  or 
friends,  than  comfort  or  life. — An  Army  Sermon^ 
"A  Good  Record"  {^Joshua  22  :  j). 


CHAPTER  XI 


ENTERING  ARMY  LIFE 

Three  years  of  missionary  labors  had  made  changes 
in  the  Connecticut  field.  To  the  State  Convention  of 
1 86 1  Mr.  Trumbull  brought  facts  that  gave  encourage- 
ment to  all. 

When  he  entered  upon  his  work,  sixty-three  thou- 
sand, or  fifty-five  per  cent,  of  those  between  the  ages 
of  four  and  eighteen  in  the  state,  were  unreached  by 
the  Sunday-school,  and  probably  one-fourth  of  the 
schools  were  in  the  habit  of  suspending  their  sessions 
for  the  winter  months.  After  three  years  of  effort 
not  more  than  forty-six  per  cent  of  those  from  four  to 
eighteen  were  outside  the  Sunday-school,  and  not 
more  than  one-sixth  of  the  schools  were  frozen  tight 
in  winter.  In  other  words,  there  was  a  gain  of  one 
hundred  and  sixty-five  new  schools,  i,866  teachers, 
and  14,762  scholars  of  all  ages. 

In  these  three  years  Mr.  Trumbull  visited  one 
hundred  and  forty-six  of  the  one  hundred  and  sixty- 
two  towns  in  the  state.  '*  Figures,"  said  he,  "give, 
of  course,  but  a  partial  view  of  such  a  work  as  that  to 
which  I  am  called.  .  .  .  To  show  that  ni}^  whole  time 
has  been  occupied  in  the  duties  of  my  position,  it  is 
perhaps  sufficient  to  remark,  that  for  ever>^  week  in 
the  three  years  of  my  service,  I  have  averaged  of 

175 


176  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


Sabbath-school  work  two  hundred  and  twenty-five 
miles  traveled,  five  schools  visited,  five  addresses 
made,  and  twenty-five  letters  written,  while  the 
schools  organized  have  averaged  nearly  two  a 
month." 

Now  this  bare  recital  of  the  spending  of  a  certain 
amount  of  time  conveys  no  hint  of  the  tense  and 
troublous  character  of  those  days  as  they  passed  into 
history.  Somewhat  later  in  his  report  Mr.  Trumbull 
had  need  to  touch  upon  the  burning  theme  of  the 
hour,  when  he  asserted  that  patriotism  is  the  legiti- 
mate offspring  of  piety,  and  in  this  hour  of  our 
nation's  peril  no  class  are  so  loyal,  so  prompt,  so 
brave  or  reliable,  as  Bible  students  and  Christian 
men.  There  is  reason  to  believe  that  at  least  fif- 
teen hundred  of  the  Connecticut  soldiers  at  present 
under  arms  are  directly  from  the  Sabbath-school, 
while  a  multitude  of  our  youth,  who  three  years 
since  were  growing  up  in  ignorance  of  both  law 
and  gospel,  are,  through  the  work  of  this  associa- 
tion, being  put  in  mind  to  'obey  magistrates,'  and 
instructed  that  *  the  powers  that  be  are  ordained  of 
God,'  and  that  'whosoever,  therefore,  resisteth  the 
power,  resisteth  the  ordinance  of  God.'  Viewed 
even  in  the  light  of  political  economy  alone,  this 
work  is  both  profitable  and  important." 

"On  Sabbath,  the  14th  of  April  [1861],"  wrote 
Mr.  Trumbull  to  The  Sunday  School  World,  "when 
intelligence  of  the  evacuation  of  Fort  Sumter  and 
of  the  President's  call  for  volunteers  was  being 
flashed  in  all  directions  over  the  telegraphic  wires, 
it  was  my  privilege  to  visit  five  Sabbath-schools — 


Entering  Army  Life 


177 


four  in  the  center  of  a  flourishing  city,  and  one  in 
the  outskirts  of  a  country  village.  All  these  I  found 
of  unusual  numbers  and  interest. 

"The  following  Sabbath,  when  the  national  capital 
was  considered  in  greatest  danger,  and  solicitude  in 
its  behalf  was  so  intense  throughout  the  North  that 
church  services  were  in  many  places  suspended  for  a 
portion  of  the  day,  I  addressed  three  full  congrega- 
tions, in  adjoining  towns,  and  seemingly  had  the  at- 
tention and  the  sympathies  of  the  people  in  behalf  of 
the  children's  cause  as  undividedly  as  ever." 

Nor  was  the  excitement  any  less  in  Mr.  Trumbull's 
home  city  than  in  the  outlying  towns.  On  Monday 
evening  after  the  fall  of  Fort  Sumter  a  prominent 
citizen  of  Hartford  had  consented  to  preside  at  a 
"Peace"  meeting.  The  meeting  had  been  called 
before  the  attack  on  Sumter,  but  the  announcement 
was  not  withdrawn.  On  Monday  morning  the  pro- 
posed chairman  was  met  by  a  personal  friend,  a 
cultured  man  of  letters.    Said  the  latter  : 

"You  cannot  preside  at  that  peace  meeting  to- 
night." 

"  Cannot !    What  do  you  mean  ?  " 
"  If  you  attempt  it  you'll  be  hanged  at  a  lamp- 
post" 

"  Why,  who'll  be  ready  to  hang  me  ?  ' 

"I,  for  one,"  said  the  quiet  literary  man,  "would 
help  to  fit  the  halter  round  your  neck,  while  other 
friends  of  yours  would  help  string  you  up." 

"Good  heavens,"  cried  the  astonished  man,  "what 
shall  I  do?" 

"I'll  get  you  an  opportunity,"  said  his  friend,  "to 


178  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


present  a  flag  to  one  of  the  companies  that  is  already 
enHsting  for  the  army." 

The  prominent  citizen  presented  the  flag  to  the 
company,  and  eventually  went  to  the  war,  where  he 
became  distinguished  for  his  bravery  and  ability. 

During  the  summer  of  '61  and  winter  and  spring 
of  '62,  Mr.  Trumbull  was  exceedingly  restive  under 
the  restraints  which  ill-health  put  upon  him.  He 
was  subject  to  agonizing  headaches,  and  to  sudden 
nasal  hemorrhages,  which  left  him  weak  and  almost 
unfit  for  work  of  any  sort.  Yet  he  would  push  on  in 
his  missionary  work  by  force  of  will,  getting  what 
relief  he  might  from  occasional  days  or  half-days  at 
home.  The  Hartford  Post  said  of  him  that  on  one 
Sunday  which  he  spent  in  New  London  **he  attended 
religious  services  at  thirteen  different  places  during 
the  day,  and  addressed  eleven  meetings  upon  the 
subject  of  Sunday-school  work.  That's  the  way  men 
do  when  they  have  their  whole  heart  in  the  work." 

Mr.  Trumbull's  whole  heart  was  in  whatever  work 
the  Lord  might  call  him  to  do.  He  wanted  to  be 
where  God  would  have  him.  It  seemed  to  him 
increasingly  clear  that  he  ought  to  be  at  the  front  in 
the  national  conflict,  but  he  was  assured  that  it  would 
be  nothing  short  of  folly  to  attempt  the  soldier  life  in 
his  uncertain  condition  of  health. 

But  the  spirit  militant  waged  warfare  against  caution. 
How  could  a  man  of  his  temperament  and  ideals,  in 
the  face  of  his  country's  need,  be  halted  by  such  a 
barrier  as  that !  The  Christian  life — warfare  !  The 
work  of  overcoming  the  opposing  forces  in  his  field — 
warfare  !    The  Rev.  Dr.  Arthur  T.  Pierson,  who  knew 


Entering  Army  Life  179 


him  intimately  in  these  years  and  to  the  end,  draws  a 
vivid  picture  of  the  militant  missionary  : 

My  first  acquaintance  with  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 
was  in  1858,  when,  myself  a  young  man,  seven  years 
his  junior,  I  was  spending  a  vacation  in  my  theologi- 
cal course  preaching  in  the  Congregational  Church  of 
West  Winsted,  Connecticut  He  was  at  that  time  act- 
ing in  the  capacity  of  a  Sunday-school  missionary,  or, 
rather,  a  Sunday-school  evangelist,  seeking  to  quicken 
and  arouse  the  churches  of  the  East  to  move  forward 
and  preoccupy  the  critical  and  strategical  points  of  the 
great  West  and  Northwest,  with  the  Sunday-school  as 
the  John  Baptist  to  prepare  the  way  of  the  Lord. 

"And  a  flaming  evangelist  he  was  !  Tall,  thin,  dark- 
eyed,  long-haired,  intense,  earnest,  and  fluent,  we  used 
to  hail  Henry  Clay  Trumbull's  visits  with  delight.  All 
the  neighboring  pastors,  like  the  gifted  Dr.  Eldridge 
of  Norfolk,  used  to  welcome  his  coming,  and  vacate 
their  pulpits  to  give  him  room. 

**  Dr.  Trumbull,  then  a  young  man  of  twenty-eight, 
gave  clear  signs  of  his  future.  Already  he  had  the  pecul- 
iar incisiveness  that  always  marked  his  utterance.  His 
eyes  flashed  fire,  his  hands  kept  time  with  his  voice 
and  lent  emphasis  to  his  words,  and  as  for  his  mouth, 
like  that  of  his  famous  namesake,  *  it  spoke  for  itself* 

**  What  peculiarly  struck  me  in  this  dear  friend  of  my 
youth  was  his  singular  power  of  marshaling  facts.  He 
was  a  field  marshal  in  the  realm  of  orator)^  He  un- 
derstood the  military  tactics  of  the  orator.  He  first 
sent  out  scouts  to  learn  the  exact  position  and  number 
of  the  enemy,  then  he  organized  his  own  battalions — 
arguments,  illustrations,  pathetic  appeals,  poetic  dc- 


i8o  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


scriptions,  imaginative  forecasts,  moral  and  spiritual 
applications — till  he  surrounded  and  captured  the  foe. 
It  was  remarkable  oratory  for  a  young  man.  There 
was  the  regular  advance  of  infantry,  with  the  dash  of 
cavalry,  and  the  thunder  of  artillery,  all  at  once. 

But  there  was  nothing  artificial.  Mr.  Trumbull's 
speaking  was  natural.  He  spoke  as  one  who  believed 
and  felt  all  he  said.  He  uttered  conviction,  and  from 
conviction  it  was  easy  to  advance  to  persuasion.  His 
enthusiasm  was  contagious.  He  moved  his  audiences. 
I  am  very  sure  he  always  moved  me.  It  was  in  the 
best  sense  impassioned  oratory.  It  was  seldom  my 
privilege  to  hear  the  Dr.  Trumbull  of  forty  years  later, 
but  when  I  did,  I  saw  that  he  had  only  carried  to 
maturity  the  promise  and  prophecy  of  his  youth.  He 
did  great  service,  in  those  early  days,  to  the  Sunday- 
school  cause.  What  he  afterward  did  by  the  pen,  in 
pushing  forward  this  great  pioneer  of  churches  and  pro- 
moter of  church  life,  he  had  begun  to  do  by  his  tongue 
in  earlier  days,  when  he  swept  like  a  flame  through 
the  East,  kindling  interest  everywhere  in  the  setting  up 
of  Sunday-schools  in  the  destitute  districts  of  the  un- 
developed empire  toward  the  sunset.  To  recall  his 
favorite  metaphor,  he  aimed  to  carry  the  flag  of  the 
cross  forward,  onward,  upward,  to  eveiy  new  point 
and  height,  and  plant  it  as  a  rallying  point  for  God's 
people,  that  they  might,  like  the  Spartan  band  at 
Thermopylae,  meet  and  resist  the  hordes  of  evil.  We 
have  often  wished  since  for  other  Trumbulls,  to  link 
the  Eastern  churches  with  the  great  open  fields  of  the 
West  by  a  bond  of  intelligent  interest  and  earnest 
co-operation." 


Entering  Army  Life 


i8i 


In  some  unpublished  notes  of  reminiscence  Dr. 
Trumbull  himself  says  :  I  should  have  been  less 
than  a  man,  had  I  not  desired  to  go.  My  elder 
brother  [James  Hammond]  was,  at  the  time.  Secre- 
tary of  State  for  Connecticut,  as  he  was  al)  through 
the  war.  He  could  do  most  by  aiding  our  *  War 
Governor'  Buckingham  in  his  important  sphere. 

My  younger  brother  Thomas,  then  practising  law 
in  New  York  City,  enlisted  in  a  three-months'  regi- 
ment from  Connecticut,  and  at  his  request  was  later 
transferred  to  the  first  three-years'  regiment  from  the 
state.  After  four  years  of  hard  service  he  was  buried 
on  the  very  day  when  Petersburg  was  evacuated, 
April  2,  1865.  My  youngest  brother  Gurdon  en- 
listed in  a  nine-months'  regiment,  but  was  taken 
severely  ill  before  the  regiment  left  the  state,  and  was 
unable  to  go  with  it. 

Governor  Buckingham  offered  me  a  major's  com- 
mission in  one  of  the  volunteer  regiments,  and  I 
desired  to  accept  it.  But  I  was  then  in  very  frail 
health,  and  my  physician  protested  that  I  could  not 
live  six  weeks  in  active  service  ;  hence  my  accepting 
the  commission  would  simply  be  the  means  of  keep- 
ing out  of  the  position  a  man  who  was  strong  enough 
to  do  its  duties.  My  brother  Thomas,  already  in 
service,  was  still  more  positive  as  to  my  unfitness  for 
army  service.  He  said  that  one  good  march  would 
kill  mc,  and  that  I  had  no  right  to  think  of  entering 
army  life.  So  I  supposed  myself  fairly  excluded  from 
an  active  share  in  the  war. 

"  It  is  a  noteworthy  fact,  however,  that  my  brother 
Thomas,  who  was  a  trained  athlete  when  he  entered 


1 82  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


service,  died  in  four  years,  worn  out  with  his  endur- 
ances. On  the  other  hand,  when  I  finally  was  in 
active  service  for  three  years,  I  came  out  stronger 
than  I  went  in.  I  really  beHeve  that  I  should  have 
died  within  a  few  years  if  it  had  not  been  for  my  army 
service.  Yet  I  have  lived  more  years  since  the  war 
than  I  lived  before  it.  This  is  not  the  first  time  that 
a  man  in  God's  service  found  his  life  by  losing  it. 

"  Because  I  was  shut  out  from  active  service  in  the 
Civil  War,  I  was  all  the  more  ready  to  exert  myself  to 
the  utmost  in  encouraging  enlistments.  I  frequently 
accompanied  recruiting  officers  in  Connecticut,  and 
made  patriotic  speeches  before  they  called  for  re- 
cruits. I  was,  of  course,  freer  than  many  able-bodied 
men  to  make  such  appeals,  because  I  could  not  go,  as 
some  others  might. 

"I  sometimes  said,  'You  may  ask  me  why  I  don't 
go  myself  I  tell  you  I  would  go  if  I  could.  If  a 
recruiting  officer  will  take  me,  I'll  enlist  to-night' 
On  one  occasion,  at  a  mass-meeting  for  Eastern  Con- 
necticut for  raising  volunteers,  I  spoke  in  Norwich, 
when  Governor  Buckingham  was  chairman  of  the 
meeting.  Referring  to  this  matter,  I  said  I  was  will- 
ing to  crawl  into  a  hundred-pound  Parrott  gun,  as  a 
wad,  and  be  fired  off  for  my  country.  Of  course,  my 
efforts  at  arousing  others  to  enlist  increased  my  desire 
to  be  in  service.  In  August  [on  the  eleventh  of  the 
month],  1862,  a  call  came  to  me  most  unexpectedly 
to  be  the  chaplain  of  the  Tenth  Connecticut  Regi- 
ment, then  at  New  Berne,  North  Carolina.  Although 
I  was  not  a  clergyman,  I  was  known  to  many  officers 
and  men  as  a  Sunday-school  worker. 


Entering  Army  Life  183 


"This  new  call  I  deemed  providential.  Governor 
Buckingham  urged  me  to  accept  it.  Not  knowing 
precisely  the  duties  of  a  chaplain,  I  thought  I  might 
accept  that  position  when  I  could  not  a  more  active 
one.  Hence  I  applied  for  ordination  as  a  Congrega- 
tional clergyman,  in  order  to  be  qualified  for  a  chap- 
laincy. The  standard  of  orthodoxy  in  war-time  was 
patriotism,  and  I  was  ordained  in  the  Center  Church, 
Hartford,  September  10,  1862,  and  then  went  to  my 
regiment  in  North  Carolina.  Here  was  a  beginning  of 
a  new  phase  of  my  life-work.  I  still  retained  my  con- 
nection with  the  American  Sunday-School  Union,  being 
counted  one  of  its  representatives  in  the  Union  Army." 

In  his  little  book  Illustrative  Answers  to  Prayer," 
Dr.  Trumbull  has  told  just  how  that  call  came  : 

One  Saturday  evening  I  returned  to  my  home 
exhausted  after  a  vigorous  campaign  through  the 
towns  of  Hartford  and  Tolland  counties,  where  I  had 
accompanied  Colonel  Dwight  Morris,  of  Bridgeport, 
commander  of  the  new  Fourteenth  Regiment,  ap- 
pealing for  volunteers. 

"Although  it  was  near  midnight  when  I  reached 
home,  instead  of  retiring  to  my  room  for  sleep,  I 
stopped  in  my  parlor  below  stairs,  and  sat  before  the 
Lord  for  a  season  of  communing  with  him.  My  own 
earnest  appeals  that  evening  to  others  to  count  their 
country's  imperative  call  for  help  in  its  life  struggle 
to  be  limited  in  their  case  only  by  their  possibility 
of  service,  came  back  on  my  mind  at  this  hour  with 
tremendous  force.  I  asked  God  earnestly  if  there 
was  not  something  more  that  I  could  do  in  view  of 
that  summons. 


184  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


In  response  the  Lord  seemed  to  ask  me  whether 
it  did  not  seem  decided  that  I  lacked  the  physical 
ability  to  serve  in  either  the  field  or  line  in  the  army. 
I  said  it  did,  but  I  had  come  to  question  more  and 
more  whether  I  might  not  do  something  as  a  chaplain 
or  as  a  lay  Christian  worker  in  camp  or  hospital,  even 
if  I  might  not  in  more  active  service. 

"  At  this  the  Lord  pointed  me  to  the  remark  made 
by  Colonel  Morris  that  very  evening  as  to  the  surplus 
of  applicants  for  a  chaplain's  commission  at  the  pres- 
ent time.  He  had  told  me  that  some  thirty  clergymen 
had  applied  to  him  for  an  appointment  as  chaplain. 
Therefore  there  was  no  special  call  on  me  to  proffer 
my  service  in  that  line  just  now.  But,  I  suggested, 
an  unsolicited  call  had  come  to  me  a  year  ago  from 
the  officers  of  the  Tenth  Connecticut  Regiment  to 
be  their  chaplain.  *  Yes,  but  that  regiment  now 
has  a  chaplain.  If  the  place  proffered  you  a  year 
ago  were  again  before  you,  you  might  indeed  count  its 
acceptance  a  duty,  but  in  the  lack  of  such  a  call  you 
must  be  contented  as  you  are.'  And  with  this  con- 
clusion I  had  to  rest  the  case  at  issue,  and  retire  for 
the  night 

Sunday,  with  its  duties,  followed  that  night.  On 
Monday  morning  the  first  mail  delivery  brought  me 
a  letter  from  New  Berne,  North  Carolina.  It  was 
from  the  colonel  of  the  Tenth  Connecticut  Regiment, 
saying  that  their  chaplain  had  resigned,  and  he  now 
again  proffered  the  position  to  me.  He  spoke  of  the 
needs  of  his  regiment  and  of  the  military  post  where 
it  was  now  stationed,  and  he  suggested  reasons  why 
I  should  accept  the  call.    The  providence  was  too 


Entering  Ar^ny  Life 


185 


marked  to  leave  me  in  any  doubt  as  to  God's  pur- 
pose for  me.  From  my  library  chair  I  called  to  my 
wife  in  the  room  above  : 

"  'Alice,  God  has  called  me  to  the  war.' 

'''Then  I  suppose  you'll  go'  was  the  quiet  response 
of  the  brave  and  patriotic  and  self-denying  little 
woman." 

Mrs.  Trumbull  had  no  thought  of  urging  her  hus- 
band to  remain  at  home,  for  she  was  then,  as  always, 
forgetful  of  self  And  she  courageously  set  her  face, 
in  company  with  so  many  thousands  of  other  brave 
women  north  and  south,  toward  the  sure  anxieties 
and  heart-breaking  personal  sacrifices  of  the  women 
of  the  war. 

From  his  boyhood  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  had  been 
an  acquisitive  student  in  the  school  of  every-day  life. 
Any  glimpse  of  character,  any  showing  forth  of  per- 
sonality, any  exhibit  of  the  workings  of  human  nature, 
was  as  fascinating  to  him  as  an  experiment  to  the 
physical  scientist.  It  was  worth  something  to  know 
how  a  man's  mind  would  probably  work  under  a  given 
set  of  circumstances.  It  was  no  small  thincj  to  learn 
the  delicate  lessons  of  tact  in  one's  relations  with 
others,  no  light  matter  to  approach  another  life  with 
the  hope  of  influencing  it  for  good.  Tact  is  not  tact 
unless  it  is  ready  for  instant  use.  It  leaps  to  the 
occasion,  or  it  is  nerveless  and  dead.  Mr.  Trumbull 
could  not  have  survived  many  months  in  the  good 
graces  of  the  Connecticut  Sunday-school  workers  if 
he  had  lacked  the  sensitive  readiness  to  put  himself 
in  the  other  man's  place. 


1 86  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


All  the  shrewdness  of  the  New  England  seashore 
village,  all  the  spirit  of  watchful  aggressiveness  in 
political  contest,  all  the  methodical  exactness  of  busi- 
ness, and  the  intimate  life-touch  of  the  mission  and 
missionary  Sunday-school  work,  gave  into  the  chap- 
lain's hands  an  equipment  of  perfect  adaptability  for 
his  service  among  the  soldiers  in  camp  and  field. 
He  was  ordained  as  chaplain  of  the  Tenth  Connecti- 
cut Volunteers  on  September  lo,  1862,  with  no  theo- 
logical training,  but  with  an  acquired  expertness  in 
biology.  He  knew  life,  knew  what  the  mental  con- 
tent of  the  average  man  was  likely  to  be, — knew  what 
would  interest  him,  influence  him,  uplift  him.  Hence 
his  ways  of  getting  at  men,  either  as  individuals  or  in 
the  mass,  were  chosen  with  careful  recognition  of  their 
needs  and  their  capacity. 

The  Tenth  was  already  in  the  field,  quartered  at 
New  Berne,  North  Carolina.  Mr.  Trumbull's  first 
chaplain's  sermon  was  not  preached  to  his  own  regi- 
ment, but,  on  Sunday,  September  21,  1862,  to  the 
Twenty-second  Connecticut,  then  in  a  rendezvous  camp 
near  Hartford.  A  small  table,"  wrote  Dr.  Trumbull, 
"had  been  borrowed  from  a  neighboring  house,  and 
set  in  the  open  air  on  the  parade-ground,  as  a  reading 
desk  for  me.  A  flag  was  thrown  over  it.  On  this 
rested  a  large  Bible  and  hymn-book.  As  I  took  my 
place  behind  it,  in  the  presence  of  the  assembled 
regiment,  I  saw  that  an  open  pack  of  cards  was  on  the 
Bible,  as  if  in  mischievous  desire  to  test  the  new  chap- 
lain. Without  being  disturbed  or  annoyed,  I  quietly 
gathered  up  the  cards,  and  put  them  out  of  sight, 
saying  in  a  low  tone  to  the  colonel,  *  Hearts  are 


Entering  Army  Life 


187 


trumps  to-day,  and  I've  a  full  hand.'  "  The  new 
chaplain  was  not  new  to  ways  of  men. 

On  October  8,  Mr.  Trumbull  was  off  for  the  South 
on  the  steamer  Ellen  S.  Terry,  out  of  New  York.  It 
was  a  rough  voyage,  plunging  the  young  chaplain 
into  the  depths  of  seasickness  and  soul-sickness,  for 
the  floods  of  the  deep  were  not  more  disheartening  to 
him  than  the  floods  of  profanity,  the  like  of  which  he 
had  never  experienced.  He  was  not  disabled,  how- 
ever, and  he  kept  a  sharp  lookout  for  opportunities 
for  service.  He  not  only  held  services  with  a  motley 
crowd  in  the  close,  hot  cabin  of  the  rolling  propeller, 
but  he  missed  no  opportunity  to  do  the  individual 
work  to  which  he  had  given  himself  ten  years  before. 

A  roystering,  profane  Major  from  a  Massachusetts 
regiment  had  been  so  impressed  by  the  chaplain's 
sermon  on  the  ten  cleansed  lepers  that  he  had  uttered 
no  oath  during  the  rest  of  the  day.  In  a  letter  to 
Mrs.  Trumbull  the  chaplain  relates  that  on  the  follow- 
ing Saturday,  as  he  lay  on  the  deck  reading  his  Bible, 
the  Major  drew  near. 

"That's  a  pretty  book  you  have  there,"  he  said. 

"Yes,  it  is,"  I  replied,  and  I  showed  him  its  maps,  its 
index,  its  binding,  its  case. 

He  pulled  out  a  book  of  infantry  tactics  from  his  pocket, 
saying  : 

"You  carry  your  book,  and  I  carry  mine." 
"Yes,"  I  replied,  "and  both  are  necessary  in  their  places." 
"  I  have  one  of  your  kind  in  iny  trunk,"  he  added. 
"I'm  glad  of  it,"  said  I.     "But  I  hope  you  don't  always 
keep  it  there  " 

"  Well,  I  don't  read  it  much,"  he  said. 

"The  more  you  read  it  the  better  you'll  like  it,"  I  said. 


1 88  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


Then  I  told  him  of  my  being  sick  and  heavy-hearted  on  my 
second  day  out,  and  thinking  much  and  anxiously  of  home 
and  loved  ones,  as  well  as  of  my  own  future  in  the  army,  and 
how  I  found,  in  my  daily  reading,  the  beautiful  promises  of  the 
Ninety-first  Psalm,  which  I  read  aloud  to  him. 

"That  must  have  been  comforting  to  you,"  he  said  with 
evident  interest,  as  I  concluded  the  reading.  The  next  morn- 
ing he  came  into  the  cabin  while  I  was  making  some  notes  for 
my  sermon.  My  Bible  lay  near  me.  Without  a  word,  he 
took  it  up  and  began  to  read.  After  sitting  a  while  he  lay 
down  on  the  sofa,  and  still  he  read.  His  companions  were 
hilarious  about  him,  but  he  read  on  for  half  or  three-quarters 
of  an  hour.  God  grant  that  he  may  not  have  read  and  heard 
in  vain  during  our  passage  ! 

On  the  first  Sunday  after  his  arrival  at  New  Berne 
Mr.  Trumbull  gave  to  the  men  of  the  regiment  the 
key-note  of  his  purpose,  when  he  preached  his  first 
sermon  on  the  text,  "  I  am  among  you  as  he  that 
serveth."  He  wanted  that  to  be  his  starting-point,  as 
leading  to  solid  ground  for  right  relations  with  his 
army  parish. 

He  promptly  organized,  on  October  26,  a  Sunday- 
school  in  the  chapel  tent  given  to  the  regiment  by 
the  Connecticut  Chaplains'  Aid  Commission.  Of 
this  army  Sunday-school  he  was  elected  superintend- 
ent, and  Adjutant  Henry  Camp  ("The  Knightly  Sol- 
dier") his  assistant.  On  the  same  day  he  conducted 
his  first  army  funeral  service,  aided  in  administering 
the  Lord's  Supper  in  the  local  Presbyterian  church, 
and  in  the  evening  he  visited  the  men  in  the  tem- 
porary hospital  at  the  camp,  later  visiting  many  in 
their  tents,  and  closing  his  day  with  a  midnight  talk 
with  an  officer  concerning  his  spiritual  longings  and 
weaknesses. 


Entering  Army  Life 


189 


A  chaplain  was  not  readily  accepted  by  the  soldiers 
as  necessarily  a  fellow-man.  Mr.  Trumbull  knew  the 
noble  record  of  m.any  a  devoted  chaplain,  and  he 
knew  the  ignominious  story  of  the  failure  of  many 
another  to  get  alongside  the  men  and  officers,  for  one 
reason  or  another.  He  decided  two  or  three  questions 
very  early  in  his  chaplaincy.  His  place  was  with 
his  parishioners,  whether  on  the  firing  line  or  in  the 
quiet  of  the  chapel  tent  His  watchword  was  service. 
He  was  highly  sensitive,  and  often  asserted  that  he 
was  physically  timid.  He  determined  that  he  would 
overcome  his  physical  shrinking  from  danger  and 
bloodshed  at  any  cost,  and  he  would  stay  with  his 
men.  But  all  this  was  not  taken  for  granted  by  the 
regiment.    They  had  yet  to  prove  their  chaplain. 

Shortly  after  he  joined  the  regiment,  the  emanci- 
pation of  the  slaves  was  arousing  much  discussion 
among  the  soldiers.  It  was  Mr.  Trumbull's  custom 
to  move  about  among  the  men,  after  supper,  when 
they  were  at  leisure,  and  talk  with  them  on  subjects 
that  were  of  interest  to  them.  As  he  was  passing 
through  one  of  the  company  streets,  a  sergeant  ac- 
costed him,  while  others  were  standing  near. 

*'  Chaplain,  do  you  think  President  Lincoln  had 
any  right  to  issue  that  proclamation  ?  " 

"  I  suppose  Jic  thought  he  had,"  replied  the  chaplain. 

The  others  laughed  at  this,  and  the  sergeant  said  : 

"  Well,  I  suppose  a  soldier's  got  a  right  to  hold  his 
own  opinions,  Chaplain,  hasn't  he?" 

"Oh,  yes!"  the  chaplain  answered,  "if  he'll  take 
care  and  Jiold  'em,  and  not  always  be  slinging  them 
around  carelessly  before  others." 


I  go 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


"Sergeant,"  said  one  of  the  bystanders,  "hadn't 
you  better  go  into  your  tent  and  take  a  little  some- 
thing warm  and  lie  down  ?  " 

When,  at  the  end  of  October,  the  regiment  left 
New  Berne  for  Washington,  North  Carolina,  Mr. 
Trumbull  was  deemed  by  the  surgeons  hardly  well 
enough  to  go  on  the  expedition.  But  the  chaplain 
made  up  his  mind  to  go,  and  go  he  did,  with  con- 
sequences that  affected  his  whole  army  life.  For  it 
was  on  this  march,  near  Williamston,  that  he  was  for 
the  first  time  under  fire.  To  have  been  absent  dur- 
ing the  engagement  would  have  been  to  lose  heavily 
in  influence. 

The  chaplain  was  by  no  means  sure  how  he  would 
act  under  fire.  He  wanted  to  safeguard  the  only 
danger  point  of  which  he  actually  stood  in  real  and 
conscious  fear,  so  he  gave  orders  to  his  negro  servant 
to  shoot  him  if  he  started  to  run  to  the  rear.  That 
would  at  least  prevent  him  from  disgracing  the  cause 
which  he  represented.  But  when  the  fight  was  on, 
and  Chaplain  Trumbull  was  for  the  first  time  under 
fire,  he  forgot  about  his  instructions  to  his  faithful 
body-guard,  forgot,  in  fact,  to  think  of  his  fears  in  the 
excitement  of  the  hour ;  and  the  terrified  servant  him- 
self was  with  no  little  difficulty  restrained  from  mak- 
ing a  break  for  the  rear.  What  this  occasion  meant 
to  the  young  chaplain  he  told  in  a  letter  to  his  wife, 
as  he  described  the  engagement  near  Williamston  on 
that  first  Sunday  in  November : 

The  afternoon  passed  slowly.  About  5  P.  M.,  just  as  the 
day  was  closing  delightfully,  the  western  sky  all  aglow  with  the 
setting  Sabbath  sun,  firing  was  heard  ahead.     It  increased 


Enteri7tg  Army  Life  191 


Muskets  and  howitzers  were  at  work.  It  was  close  at  hand. 
Instantly  all  was  preparation  for  fight.  Everything  was  in 
confusion,  yet  everything  in  order.  The  fences  were  torn 
down  like  a  flash.  The  artillery'  from  our  rear  dashed  past  us 
into  the  fields  to  secure  a  good  position.  Our  regiment  filed 
off,  and  drew  up  in  line  of  battle  to  support  it  With  Dr. 
Newton,  I  went  ahead  of  the  regiment  to  a  clump  of  trees  on 
the  opposite  side  of  the  road,  and  a  good  place  for  surgical 
operations  was  selected.  We  were  under  fire.  The  bullets 
whistled  about  us  merrily.  The  peculiar  sound  of  the  musket 
and  rifle  balls  of  which  I  had  heard  so  much  was  now  in  my 
ears.  As  I  sat  talking  with  Dr.  Hart  on  horseback,  a  ball 
passed  directly  between  our  faces,  which  were  not  three  feet 
apart  .  .  .  The  hour  was  an  important  one  to  me.  I  shall  not 
be  likely  to  forget  it  ...  I  was  ready  to  do  anything,  to  go 
anywhere  in  the  line  of  duty.  I  thanked  God  for  the  calm- 
ness, the  strength  he  gave  me.  I  felt  more  at  my  ease  than 
ever  I  hoped  to  in  such  circumstances. 

Before  Mr.  Trumbull  left  Hartford,  his  medical 
friends  gave  him  the  comforting  assurance  that  he 
would  probably  be  able  to  live  a  few  weeks  in  the 
army,  but  no  more.  On  this  first  expedition  he 
started  as  a  sick  man,  and  gained  four  pounds  in 
about  as  many  weeks  of  soldier  life.  A  little  later  he 
wrote  to  his  wife  : 

About  that  beard  !  Sometimes  I  have  shaved,  and  some- 
times I  have  not  On  the  march  I  cannot  shave.  At  New 
Berne  I  can.  Naturally  my  beard  is  longer  when  I  do  not 
shave  than  when  I  do.  This  is  true  of  both  upper  lip  and 
chin.  Now  if  you  are  so  very  anxious  not  to  have  me  home 
with  a  beard,  and  I  should  be  on  a  march  or  elsewhere  beyond 
the  reach  of  razors  before  obtaining  a  furlough,  I  suppose  I 
must  give  up  all  hope  of  seeing  you.  Moreover,  if  you  dread 
the  thought  of  my  looking  differently  in  consequence  of  my 
army  life,  I  must,  of  course,  wear  off  the  bronze  of  exposure 


Henry  Clay  TrMmbull 


from  my  face,  and  thin  myself  down  to  the  old  skeleton  finish. 
I  will  bear  your  request  in  mind. 

Whatever  the  chaplain's  gain  in  health  may  have 
been,  he  had  won  the  confidence  of  his  comrades,  a 
thing  which  was  just  as  essential  as  health  to  the  suc- 
cessful prosecution  of  his  work.  He  was  a  fellow- 
soldier  with  them.  He  took  no  advantage  of  the 
somewhat  common  expectation  of  a  chaplain's  non- 
combative  inclinations  and  position  when  a  fight  was 
on.  As  he  rode  along  the  lines  on  the  return  march 
to  New  Berne,  when  the  regiment  had  halted  by  the 
way,  the  men  would  greet  him  with  marked  cor- 
diality. ''There's  our  chaplain  smiling  at  us,"  one 
man  said  quietly  to  another.  As  the  chaplain  sat  by 
a  fence  putting  some  court  plaster  on  a  soldier's  face, 
another,  passing  by,  put  his  hand  on  Trumbull's 
shoulder,  saying  : 

*'  What  are  you  doing  here  ?  " 

''  Oh,  the  chaplain  thinks  a  good  deal  of  me,  and 
he's  fixing  my  face  where  I  barked  my  nose,"  inter- 
posed the  patient. 

"  I  thought  so,"  said  the  other.  "  I  knew  he  was 
doing  something  good.  You  ain't  like  some  of  your 
brother  officers,  off  hunting  whiskey  and  seeing  what 
you  can  steal.    You're  a  good  minister." 

To  the  chaplain  it  must  have  been  worth  all  the 
fatigue  and  danger  of  the  expedition  to  have  another 
fellow-soldier  greet  him,  when  they  were  once  again 
in  New  Berne,  with  this  cheering  observation  : 

I  thought,  when  I  saw  you  in  the  hospital  first, 
*  There,  about  three  days'  march  will  finish  that  man.' 
But  you  have  stood  it  first  rate  !  " 


A  SOLDIER  FRIENDSHIP  IN 
FIELD  AND  PRISON 


Friendship  is  love  for  another  because  of  what 
that  other  is  in  himself,  or  for  that  other' s  own 
sake,  and  not  because  of  what  that  other  is  to 
the  loving  one.  Friendship  is  love  with  the 
selfish  element  eliminated.  It  is  an  out-going 
and  an  on-going  affection,  wholly  and  inherently 
disinterested,  and  in  no  sense  contingent  upon 
any  reciprocal  relation  between  its  giver  and  its 
object,  nor  yet  upon  its  return  or  recognition. 
Friendship,  in  short,  is  love  apart  from  love's 
claim  or  love' s  craving.  This  is  pure  friendship, 
friendship  without  alloy.  This  is  friendship  at 
its  truest  and  best  ;  and  this  it  is  that  makes  the 
best  and  truest  friendship  so  rare,  so  difficult  of 
conception,  so  liable  to  misconception.  This 
also  it  is  that  multiplies  the  specious  resem- 
blances of  friendship — in  hearts  that  are  incapable 
of  comprehending  its  full  reality  ;  and  that  gives 
to  those  imperfect  substitutes  for  its  reality  such 
a  disappointing  power. 

In  all  holiest  and  most  unselfish  love,  friend- 
ship is  the  purest  element  of  the  affection.  No 
love  in  any  relation  of  life  can  be  at  its  best  if 
the  element  of  friendship  be  lacking.  And  no 
love  can  transcend,  in  its  possibilities  of  noble 
and  ennobling  exaltation,  a  love  that  is  pure 
friendship. — Friettdship  the  Master- Passion. 


CHAPTER  XII 


A  SOLDIER  FRIENDSHIP  IN   FIELD  AND  PRISON 

More  than  a  year  before  Chaplain  Trumbull  had 
come  to  the  Tenth  Connecticut,  a  young  law  student 
in  Hartford  was  practising  the  difficult  art  of  self- 
denying  recognition  of  filial  obligations  while  the  call 
of  his  country  was  ringing  in  his  ears.  He  saw  that 
the  day  would  come  when  he  must  answer  that  call, 
and  he  quietly  prepared  himself  to  give  an  answer  that 
should  count.  When  in  November  a  commission  was 
offered  him  in  the  Tenth  Connecticut,  the  way  was 
made  clear  for  him,  and  in  December  Henry  Ward 
Camp  entered  the  army  as  a  second  lieutenant. 
When  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  joined  the  regiment  in 
October  Camp  had  been  its  adjutant  for  two  months. 

The  two  had  known  each  other  well  in  Hartford, 
but  now  they  were  to  be  friends.  To  Henr>^  Trum- 
bull it  was  no  mere  social  convenience  to  enter  into  a 
friendship  with  another.  To  be  a  friend,  as  he  un- 
derstood that  relationship,  was  to  have  for  another  an 
outgoing,  unselfish  love,  a  love  that  sought  nothing 
for  self  in  return.  To  have  a  friend  was  not,  in  Mr. 
Trumbull's  thought,  to  possess  a  means  for  personal 
gain,  but  an  opportunity^  for  personal  ser\'icc.  Henry 
Trumbull  and  Hcnr}^  Camp  were  at  once  drawn  to 
each  other  in  the  closest  intimac)-.     Of  this  friendship 

195 


196  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


the  chaplain  wrote  in  his  biography  of  Camp,  "The 
Knightly  Soldier"  : 

''Their  tastes  were  similar.  Their  characters  were 
sufficiently  unlike  to  be  in  harmony.  The  training 
of  each  was  such  that  he  possessed  what  the  other 
deemed  his  lack.  One  [Camp]  had  a  finely  cultured, 
richly  stored  mind  ;  the  other  a  fund  of  personal  ex- 
perience. The  opinions  of  the  one  were  all  formed 
from  the  study  of  underlying  principles  ;  the  judg- 
ments of  the  other  were  based  upon  practical  observa- 
tions. Their  regimental  duties  kept  them  near  each 
other.  Their  home  friends  being  side  by  side,  they 
were  linked  in  every  interest." 

The  "  twins,"  as  they  soon  came  to  be  called,  were 
together  in  tent  and  field,  in  work  and  spirit.  When, 
in  January,  '63,  the  Tenth  had  gone  into  camp  on  St. 
Helena  Island,  opposite  Hilton  Head,  South  Carolina, 
the  adjutant  and  the  chaplain  were  seldom  separated. 
They  had  ample  time,  aside  from  their  military  duties, 
to  discuss  problems  of  deep  interest  to  both.  Camp 
was  a  Yale  graduate,  a  man  of  the  finest  sensibilities, 
and  trained  to  think.  Trumbull  was  already  a  past- 
master  in  the  art  of  dealing  with  men,  and  alert  and 
incisive  in  his  mental  habits.  Of  their  differences  in 
characteristics  the  chaplain  wrote : 

"Camp's  calm,  reliable  judgment  many  times  held 
in  check  the  chaplain's  nervous  impulsiveness  ;  his 
stores  of  information  proved  the  other  often  in  error 
as  to  facts  bearing  on  a  question  at  issue  ;  his  uniform 
fairness  liberalized  some  sentiments  of  his  friend  as 
to  men  and  measures,  and  his  remarkable  purity  of 
mind  and  consistency  of  adherence  to  his  conscien- 


A  Soldier  Friendship 


197 


tious  views  of  right  could  not  fail  to  be  elevating  and 
ennobling  to  one  closely  associated  with  him.  On 
the  other  hand,  Camp  had  been  so  accustomed  to  ex- 
amine every  question  in  its  purely  logical  bearings,  as 
sometimes  to  overlook  its  practical  relations  to  every- 
day life  in  the  world  as  it  is." 

The  total  abstinence  question  they  discussed  nearly 
all  of  one  night  on  the  deck  of  an  army  transport ; 
card-playing  received  a  similar  examination  on  another 
evening.  The  danger  in  the  occasional  use  of  alco- 
holic liquor  and  the  practical  inexpediency  of  card- 
playing  was  made  so  clear  to  Camp  that  he  came 
squarely  and  forever  over  to  the  chaplain's  views  and 
practises. 

On  the  other  hand,  Trumbull  found  in  his  friend  a 
personality^  that  was  to  him  captivating  and  inspiring, 
and  if  he  enabled  Camp  to  get  nearer  to  a  practical 
application  of  right  principles,  Camp  in  turn  was  ail- 
unconsciously  putting  into  the  concrete  noble  ideals 
of  manhood  which  aroused  all  that  was  best  in  the 
chaplain.  To  Mrs.  Trumbull  he  wrote,  enthusiastic- 
ally: 

The  adjutant — or  Henry,  as  I  call  him  now — is  a  very  fine 
man.  Oh,  Alice,  he  is  unequaled.  He  is  beyond  any  ideal 
I  ever  had,  and  he  is  up  to  the  highest  mark  your  very  par- 
ticular self  ever  set  before  the  race.  He  is  the  purest-minded 
man  I  ever  imagined.     I  never  saw  his  like  in  this. 

On  St.  Helena  Island,  while  engaging  in  moral  and 
metaphysical  discussion  with  Henry  Camp,  the  chaj)- 
lain  was  finding  experiences  in  a  world  cjuitc  outside 
anything  with  which  he  had  been  familiar  in  the 
North.     Some  of  the  freed  slaves  were  within  the 


198  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


Federal  lines  just  there,  and  twenty  or  thirty  of  them 
were  officers'  servants.  These  young  fellows  had 
never  known  what  it  was  to  read,  much  less  to  own  a 
book.  But  they  had  in  some  way  secured  two  spell- 
ing-books or  primary  readers,  and  day  or  night  in 
their  spare  hours  they  were  learning  to  read,  taking 
turns  with  the  two  books. 

"As  I  lay  in  my  tent  at  night,"  wrote  the  chap- 
lain, I  would  hear  low  negro  voices,  back  of  the 
tent,  repeating  words  as  from  an  elementary  school 
reader, — 'The  hen  is  in  the  yard,'  'The  dog  barks  at 
the  hen,'  'Puss  sits  by  the  fire.  She  is  warm.'  'This 
boy  is  James.  He  drives  a  hoop.*  *  Now  is  the  best 
time  to  do  well,'  and  so  on.  Hearing  these  sounds 
night  after  night,  I  was  led  to  go  out  and  look  up 
their  meaning.  I  found  that  back  of  the  field  and 
staff  tents  there  was  built  a  blazing  fire  of  pine 
branches  under  the  moss-hung  live  oaks,  before 
which  some  of  the  boys  were  poring  over  their 
treasured  books,  learning  their  'lesson  for  the  night. 
The  flickering  light  in  the  deep  shadows  gave  a 
weird  look  to  the  strange  scene,  but  it  was  a  vivid 
reality. 

"Those  who  were  too  old,  when  they  were  freed, 
to  learn  to  read,  or  to  gain  the  advantages  of  an  edu- 
cation, were  all  the  more  desirous  that  their  children 
should  attain  the  prize  of  knowledge  which  they  had 
missed.  This  secured  a  full  attendance  at  all  the 
many  schools  for  freed  slaves,  started  along  the  coast 
within  our  lines  by  the  various  missionary  associa- 
tions and  freedmen's  aid  societies  at  the  North  that 
undertook  this  work.    The  first  school  of  this  sort 


A  Soldier  Friendship 


that  I  saw  in  operation  was  on  St  Helena  Island,  in 
March,  1863,  although  I  later  saw  many  others." 

On  March  27,  General  Stevenson's  brigade,  of 
which  the  Tenth  Connecticut  was  a  part,  left  St. 
Helena  for  Seabrook  Island,  as  the  advance  of  Hun- 
ter and  Dupont's  expedition  against  Charleston.  The 
Tenth  was  first  ashore,  while  the  iron-clads  shelled 
the  woods  of  the  island.  Captains  Goodyear  and 
Atherton  led  skirmishers  in  advance  of  the  regiment, 
while  General  Stevenson,  Colonel  Otis,  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  Leggett,  Chaplain  Trumbull,  and  Adjutant 
Camp  led  the  column.  That  night  a  sergeant  of  the 
Tenth  on  the  picket-reserves  was  mortally  wounded, 
and  was  taken  prisoner.  "He  is  the  first  man," 
wrote  Camp,  ''ever  taken  forcibly  prisoner  from  the 
regiment.  It  would  have  been  better  to  lose  a  dozen 
in  action." 

Among  the  iron-clads  that  had  protected  the  land- 
ing of  Stevenson's  brigade  was  the  monitor  Catskill, 
bearing  Commander  George  W.  Rodgers,  in  command 
of  the  fleet,  whom  Henry  Trumbull  had  known  as  a 
boy.  Rodgers  called  on  him  at  Seabrook  Island,  and 
invited  the  ''twins"  to  visit  the  monitor. 

"On  the  occasion  of  my  first  dining  with  him," 
wrote  Trumbull,  "  I  was  impressed  with  the  sym- 
metry of  his  Christian  character.  Our  only  compan- 
ion at  table  was  my  tent-mate  and  loved  friend, 
Adjutant  Camp.  As  we  three  sat  together,  the 
steward  brought  wine  to  us.  The  adjutant  and  I 
declined  it.  '  Would  you  like  a  lighter  wine  than 
this  ?  *  asked  Commander  Rodgers.  '  Thank  you, 
no,'  was  the  reply  from  each  of  us.     '  Do  neither  of 


200  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


you  drink  wine?'  'Neither  of  us.'  'Then,  steward, 
you  can  remove  the  wine,'  he  said.  '  I  have  not  used 
wine  for  twenty  years.'  " 

The  chaplain  conducted  a  service  on  the  Catskill, 
and  was  often  with  Rodgers  on  ship  and  shore.  In 
July,  the  fleet  was  off  for  Charleston.  In  August, 
when  George  Rodgers,  in  advance  of  the  rest  of  the 
fleet,  in  an  attack  on  Charleston,  was  in  the  pilot- 
house of  the  Catskill,  a  shot  from  one  of  the  forts 
struck  the  iron  house  in  which  he  stood,  shivering  a 
scale  and  bolt  from  its  inner  surface,  killing  him  in- 
stantly." 

When  this  gallant  and  daring  son  of  a  race  of  naval 
heroes  died  at  his  post  of  duty,  the  chaplain  and  the 
adjutant  were  passing  through  an  experience  which 
at  the  time  they  would  gladly  have  exchanged  for 
almost  any  other  in  army  life. 

''It  was  on  Saturday  evening,  July  i8,  1863," 
wrote  Chaplain  Trumbull,  "  that  General  Gillmore 
made  his  disastrous  assault  on  Fort  Wagner,  at  the 
entrance  to  Charleston  Harbor.  The  next  day  the 
dead  and  many  of  the  wounded  lay  on  the  sand  plain 
and  among  the  sand  hills  between  that  fort  and  the 
outer  line  of  the  Union  works,  then  held  by  our  bri- 
gade. A  flag  of  truce  arranged  for  a  cessation  of 
hostilities,  in  order  to  bury  the  dead  and  remove  the 
wounded.  At  the  suggestion  of  one  of  my  command- 
ers, I  went  out  on  the  field  to  render  such  assistance 
as  I  could  in  the  line  of  ministry  to  the  wounded. 
My  tent-mate  and  intimate  friend,  Adjutant  Camp, 
accompanied  me.  As  we  were  moving  along  in  the 
prosecution  of  my  work,  we  were  met  by  a  Confeder- 


A  Soldier  Friendship 


20I 


ate  officer  and  three  or  four  men  who  were  on  a 
similar  humane  mission.  The  officer  claimed  that 
we  had  passed  the  truce  line  agreed  on,  although  it 
was  unmarked,  between  the  two  forces,  and  that  we 
were  in  consequence  his  prisoners.  When  we  pro- 
tested against  being  thus  held,  as  we  were  still  very 
near  our  works,  and  at  a  much  greater  distance  from 
the  enemy's,  we  were  assured  that  the  commanding 
general  would  not  wish  to  take  any  advantage  of  an 
unintentional  mistake  as  to  the  truce  line  at  such  a 
time,  but  that  we  must  be  detained  until  he  author- 
ized our  return.  It  was  thus  that  I  came  to  be  a 
prisoner  of  war. 

"When  word  came  back  from  General  Hagood, 
referring  the  ultimate  decision  ot  our  case  to  General 
Ripley  at  Charleston,  we  were  led  up  the  island.  Our 
eyes  were  blindfolded  while  passing  the  works  of  the 
enemy,  so  that  we  should  not  have  any  important 
information  to  carry  back  in  case  of  our  release.  .  .  , 

"Just  after  dark  we  were  taken  on  board  a  small 
steamer,  on  which  were  many  of  our  wounded  in  the 
recent  fight,  together  with  sound  enlisted  men,  both 
black  and  white,  who  were  also  prisoners.  On  our 
way  up  to  Charleston  we  stopped  at  the  sally-port  of 
Fort  Sumter,  through  which  Major  Anderson  and  his 
command  had  passed  out  after  the  opening  conflict  of 
the  war.  We  realized,  even  then,  the  historic  asso- 
ciations and  profound  impressiveness  of  that  spot.  I 
think  we  were  the  last  Union  officers  who  were  there 
before  the  army  and  navy  bombardment  reduced  the 
imposing  fortress  to  a  shapeless  ruin,  without,  liow- 
evcr,  destroying  its  value  as  a  fortification.    A  way 


202  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


for  our  steamer  was  opened,  from  that  point,  through 
the  chain  of  obstructions  across  the  entrance  of  the 
harbor,  and  we  proceeded  to  Charleston." 

It  was  dark  as  they  passed  through  jeering  crowds 
in  the  Charleston  streets,  side  by  side  with  captured 
negro  soldiers  of  a  Massachusetts  regiment,  on  their 
way  to  jail.  Throngs  were  cheering  over  the  news  of 
the  riots  in  New  York  City ;  battles  had  been  lost  to 
the  Federal  forces,  and  the  last  news  they  had  re- 
ceived from  the  North  told  of  the  giant  conflict  at 
Gettysburg,  then  undecided. 

The  two  officers  were  shut  in  with  murderers  and 
desperadoes,  with  the  riffraff  from  the  city's  purlieus. 
The  room  in  which  they  were  confined  was  so  packed 
with  prisoners  that  there  was  not  space  for  all  to  stretch 
themselves  on  the  floor,  and  the  stifling  closeness  of 
the  reeking  cell  was  well-nigh  suffocating  to  men  who 
had  lived  for  months  in  the  open  air.  Early  on  the 
next  day  they  were  removed  to  the  room  in  which 
other  Morris  Island  officer-prisoners  were  confined. 
They  were  examined  in  the  jail  office  by  an  aide  of 
General  Beauregard,  and,  before  many  hours  had 
passed,  the  chaplain  was  ordered  out  on  parole,  for 
service  among  the  wounded  in  the  ''Yankee  Hos- 
pital," a  four-story  brick  building,  an  old  slave  pen, 
on  Queen  Street.  One  hundred  and  sixty-three  of 
these  trampled,  sand-swept,  wounded  soldiers  were  on 
the  straw  pallets  of  the  receiving  room,  or  on  the 
operating  tables  in  the  yard,  or  lying  on  cots  in  the 
upper  rooms.  Eight  Confederate  surgeons,  doing 
everything  in  their  power,  labored  untiringly  to  re- 
lieve the  agony  and  to  save  the  lives  of  these  pitiable 


A  Soldier  Friendship 


203 


sufferers.  Sisters  of  Mercy  moved  about  the  wards, 
ministering,  tenderly  to  the  men,  and  now  and  again 
pointing  out  to  Chaplain  Trumbull  Protestant  soldiers 
who  especially  desired  his  ministrations. 

The  chaplain  gathered  canteens  and  carried  water 
from  the  courtyard  hydrant  to  those  who  were  thirst- 
ing. As  he  was  thus  at  work  on  the  upper  floor  a 
Confederate  surgeon,  pointing  to  a  cot,  said  to  him  : 

Chaplain,  there's  a  little  fellow  who  is  sinking 
rapidly.  He'll  not  live  many  hours.  I  think  you'd 
better  talk  with  him." 

The  chaplain  turned  to  the  boy,  a  New  England 
lad  hardly  eighteen  years  old.  As  gently  as  he  could 
he  told  the  lad  that  he  could  not  expect  to  live. 

"But,  Chaplain,  I'm  not  ready  to  die." 
Jesus  Christ  can  make  you  ready — to  live  or  to 
die,  if  you'll  just  put  yourself  in  his  hands." 

"  Oh  !  but.  Chaplain,  I've  been  a  very  wicked  boy. 
I  was  a  bad  boy  at  home  ;  although  I  had  a  real  good 
home  ;  and  in  the  army  I've  been  just  as  bad  as  I 
could  be." 

"Jesus  Christ  came  into  the  world  to  save  sinners," 
said  the  chaplain,  "  and  he  loves  to  have  those  who 
have  been  bad  come  to  him  to  be  saved." 

"Will  you  pray  for  me,  Chaplain?"  After  his 
prayer,  Mr.  Trumbull  left  him,  only  to  return  in  a 
little  while.  The  boy  was  soon  ready  to  ask  the 
Saviour  to  forgive  his  sins,  and  with  the  chaplain's 
hand  resting  tenderly  upon  him,  he  prayed  in  sim- 
plicity and  trust,  while  the  nurses  and  surgeons  gath- 
ered around  the  two  in  tearful  sympathy. 

"A  third  time,"  wrote  the  chaplain,  "after  a  brief 


204  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


absence,  I  was  by  that  soldier  lad.  His  eyes  were 
closed.  His  face  was  very  pale.  At  first  I  thought 
he  had  already  passed  away,  and  I  stooped  over  him 
to  find  if  he  were  still  breathing.  Seeming  to  feel 
my  presence,  he  opened  his  eyes,  and  for  a  moment 
looked  up  vacantly.  Then,  as  full  consciousness  re- 
turned, he  recognized  me  with  an  *  Oh,  it's  you. 
Chaplain,'  and  throwing  up  both  his  arms  he  clasped 
them  about  my  neck,  and  drew  my  face  down  to  his 
to  give  me  a  dying  kiss. 

"  *  You  are  the  best  friend  I've  got  in  the  world,* 
he  said.     'You've  saved  my  soul.' 

*  No,  no,  my  dear  boy,'  I  said,  tenderly.  *  Jesus 
saves  your  soul.' 

*  Yes,  yes,  but  you've  told  me  about  Jesus,  and 
he's  saved  my  soul.  He  has,  Chaplain, — I  don't 
have  any  doubt  about  it.  He  has  forgiven  all  my 
sins,  and  now  I'm  going  to  be  with  him.  Oh,  how 
happy  my  father  and  mother  will  be.  I  want  you  to 
write  and  tell  them  all  about  it'  " 

As  the  chaplain  rose  from  the  bedside  of  the  dying 
boy,  he  was  tapped  on  the  shoulder  by  a  messenger 
from  Captain  Mellen,  Beauregard's  aide,  and  ordered 
to  go  with  the  captain  to  the  provost's  office.  On  the 
way  he  was  informed  that  he  was  remanded  to  jail  by 
order  of  General  Jordan,  Beauregard's  chief  of  staff, 
this  time  in  close  confinement.  Heniy  Camp  had 
been  taken  to  Columbia  for  imprisonment  while  the 
chaplain  was  on  service  in  the  hospital.  The  latter 
was  not  therefore  to  have  the  companionship  of  his 
friend  ;  he  could  get  no  information  concerning  the 
new  orders  ;  he  never  knew  until  months  afterwards 


A  Soldier  Friendship 


205 


that  he  was  under  suspicion  as  a  spy.  To  Mrs. 
Trumbull  he  wrote  : 

And  now,  by  an  order  from  the  general,  I  am  to  be  placed 
in  close  confinement, — for  what,  I  cannot  imagine.  I  am  led 
across  the  hall  and  into  a  room  with  a  single  window,  over- 
looking the  yard  instead  of  the  street.  .  .  .  No  furniture  is  here, 
no  bedstead,  table,  or  stool,  and  not  a  bench  against  the  wall. 
Despairing  of  attaining  these,  I  ask  the  turnkey  if  I  may  not 
hire  a  mattress,  or  purchase  some  straw,  or  at  least  have  a  log 
of  Avood  to  serve  as  a  pillow,  but  each  request  is  met  with  a 
decided  negative,  and  I  must  content  myself  as  I  am.  Content 
myself  !  Oh,  Alice,  consider  me,  so  nervous  as  to  be  accus- 
tomed to  stand  or  walk  when  desirous  of  rest,  rather  than  to 
endure  the  confinement  of  sitting  or  lying, — so  fond  of  excite- 
ment as  to  risk  my  life  often  needlessly,  rather  than  be  quiet 
when  motion  and  a  struggle  for  an  object  are  possible, — so 
socially  inclined  as  to  do  my  studying  at  home  with  the  family 
all  about  me,  and  to  hurry,  out  of  breath,  to  walk  half  a  block 
with  a  mere  acquaintance, — here  in  a  prison  house  with  win- 
dows and  doors  barred  against  me,  unable  to  move  beyond 
these  contracted  walls,  having  no  occupation,  nothing  to  call 
for  or  admit  of  the  slightest  exertion,  and  shut  out,  not  only 
from  the  companionship  of  the  friend  without  whom  I  have 
scarcely  breathed  since  entering  the  army,  but  from  all  human 
fellowship  and  sympathy,  and  the  society  of  any  created  being, 
— and  imagine  how  contented  I  must  be,  and  how  pleasantly 
the  hours  go  by  !  .  .  .  How  can  I  stand  this  ?  Can  I  live  long 
in  such  a  place  and  plight?.  .  .  Anything  but  this  confine- 
ment, and  I  fear  not  what  man  can  do  to  me  beyond  keeping 
me  thus  shut  up.  Hanging  would  be  so  pleasant  in  compari- 
son with  this. 

The  pleasure  of  bein^  hanged  was  denied  to  the 
chaplain.  He  was,  indeed,  under  suspicion  as  a  spy, 
for  he  had  been  recognized  in  the  "  Yankee  Hospital  " 
by  a  Confederate  ofiFicer  who  had  seen  him  within  the 


206 


Henry  Clay  Trwnbiill 


Confederate  lines  on  a  flag  of  truce  near  Kinston  in 
the  previous  year.  But  his  release  was  demanded 
by  a  flag  of  truce  from  General  Gillmore,  at  General 
Terry's  request,  on  the  ground  of  unfair  detention, 
and  he  was  taken  to  General  Beauregard's  office  re- 
peatedly for  examination  by  General  Jordan.  No 
evidence  was  found,  however,  to  convict  the  chaplain, 
and  he  was,  on  Friday,  July  24,  1863,  removed  to 
Richland  Jail  in  Columbia,  South  Carolina,  and  was 
once  more  with  Henry  Camp. 

Three  months  in  Columbia  brought  many  strange 
experiences  to  ''the  twins."  There  was  ever  the 
harassing,  depressing  sense  of  confinement  making 
its  mental  and  physical  inroads  upon  the  spirit  and 
constitution,  but  there  was  opportunity  for  service, 
and  relief  from  the  tedium  of  prison  surroundings. 
The  chaplain  was  allowed  to  preach,  and  this  he  did, 
to  officers  and  to  the  enlisted  men  in  their  separate 
quarters,  or  standing  on  the  steps  of  the  jail,  while 
prisoners  filled  the  yard.  He  had  often  talked  with 
prisoners  in  northern  jails,  but  never  from  their  own 
standpoint,  and  never  with  a  guard  close  beside  him, 
with  bayonet  and  loaded  musket  ready  to  punctuate 
any  utterances  that  might,  contrary  to  orders,  touch 
upon  the  conflict  uppermost  in  the  minds  of  speaker 
and  hearers. 

Through  the  kindness  of  the  captain  of  the  prison 
guard  a  copy  of  Shakespeare  was  supplied  for  the 
officers'  use,  while  books  for  the  study  of  German 
were  bought  by  some  of  the  Union  officers,  and  util- 
ized by  nearly  all. 

From  the  windows  of  the  rooms  in  which  Trumbull 


A  Soldier  Friendship  207 


and  Camp  were  confined  with  brother  officers,  they 
could  see,  close  by,  the  town  hall  tower  with  its  clock, 
and  its  balcony  on  which  a  watchman  made  his 
nightly  round.  At  fifteen  minutes  before  nine  he 
would  ring  the  tower  bell  long  and  furiously  as  a  sig- 
nal for  the  housing  of  all  the  negroes  in  the  city  ; 
and  when  the  clock  had  struck,  his  far-reaching  call, 
"  Pa-st  ni-i-ne  o'clock,"  rang  out  over  the  city. 
Through  the  night,  as  the  hours  passed,  they  were 
quartered  and  halved  by  his  cheering  call,  "  Pa-a-st 
twelve"  and  "All's  well,"  until  morning  dawned. 
Mr.  Trumbull  made  a  careful  pencil-sketch  of  this 
neighborly  and  consoling  clock  tower,  a  sketch  which 
could  hardly  be  surpassed  for  fineness  and  accuracy 
of  detail.  He  was  by  no  means  lacking  in  skill  with 
the  pencil,  a  trait  that  so  distinguished  his  brother 
Gurdon,  and  in  war-time  he  exercised  this  gift  on 
more  than  one  occasion.  One  of  the  illustrations 
in  "The  Knightly  Soldier"  is  an  engraving  made 
directly  from  a  sketch  of  his. 

It  was  not  "all  well"  or  all  peaceful  within  those 
prison  walls.  While  the  superior  officers  of  the  prison 
heartily  accorded  soldierly  treatment  to  the  prisoners, 
there  were  underlings  who  showed  nothing  of  that 
spirit,  because  ignorant  or  coarse  or  brutal  in  them- 
selves. The  Confederate  prisoners  on  the  floor  above 
the  Union  soldiers  were  treated  with  greater  sc\'crit>' 
than  the  latter.  On  one  afternoon  two  of  them,  who 
were  quietly  looking  out  of  their  windows  contrar)-  to 
orders,  were  shot  without  warning  by  one  of  the  guards. 
A  few  days  later,  a  Federal  officer  who,  severely 
wounded,  "had  been  for  weeks  in  a  hospital,  seated 


2o8  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


himself  in  a  grated  window  of  the  jail  in  order  to  get 
a  breath  of  air.  The  Federal  prisoners  had  not  been 
forbidden  to  go  to  the  windows,  but  a  sentry  brutally 
told  the  captain  to  get  out  of  the  window,  or  he  would 
shoot  him.  As  the  captain  feebly  tried  to  obey, 
Chaplain  Trumbull,  impetuously  breaking  all  prison 
restraint,  and  aroused  to  the  highest  pitch  of  righteous 
indignation,  leaped  on  to  the  window-seat,  and  thrust 
himself  between  the  captain  and  the  grating,  shouting 
as  he  did  so  : 

If  you  want  to  shoot  anybody,  shoot  a  well  man ! 
Don't  be  so  cowardly  as  to  shoot  down  a  poor,  sick, 
wounded  officer.  Take  a  well  one,  if  you  must  shoot 
anybody.  We  shouldn't  be  in  here  as  prisoners  if 
we  hadn't  been  willing  to  face  shooting.  Shoot  away, 
then,  if  you  want  to  !" 

The  sentry  lowered  his  musket  and  walked  away. 
When  the  lieutenant  on  duty  heard  the  story  he  at 
once  replaced  the  sentry  with  another,  and  said  that 
the  prisoners  were  to  occupy  the  windows  as  they 
pleased. 

It  was  undoubtedly  a  tremendous  relief  to  the  chap- 
lain to  let  himself  go  at  that  time.  He  was  wont  to 
say  in  his  later  years  that  he  never  had  felt  so  much 
at  home  in  civilian  surroundings  as  he  did  in  the 
army,  for  there  he  could  be  intense  without  seeming 
to  be  overstepping  the  mark.  The  defense  of  the 
captain  was  characteristic.  But  there  was  another 
experience  yet  to  come  to  Mr.  Trumbull  in  his  prison 
life  which  was  not  to  be  met  by  intensity  or  physical 
courage. 

No  word  from  home  had  reached  Chaplain  Trum- 


A  Soldier  Friendship 


209 


bull  since  his  imprisonment  in  Columbia,  The  prison 
regulations  forbade  the  receiving  or  the  sending  of 
more  than  a  half-sheet  of  note  paper  at  a  time,  and 
the  transmission  of  the  mails  was  uncertain  at  the 
best.  But  one  morning  early  in  September  the  heu- 
tenant  of  the  guard  called  out  the  chaplain's  name, 
and  handed  him  a  letter  from  home,  addressed  in  the 
handwriting  of  Edward  M.  Gallaudet,  his  brother-in- 
law. 

Mr.  Trumbull  seized  the  letter  with  an  eagerness 
born  of  long  silence  and  weeks  of  prison  loneliness 
and  depression.  He  tore  open  the  envelope  with  im- 
patient, trembling  fingers,  and,  seeing  that  the  letter 
was  from  his  wife,  he  scanned  the  first  precious  lines 
with  a  quick  and  comprehensive  glance,  even  before 
the  sheet  was  unfolded. 

But  on  a  still  unopened  fold  a  few  words  seemed  to 
leap  to  his  vision  through  all  the  rest,  and  he  dropped, 
chilled  and  stunned,  to  his  bed  upon  the  floor.  For 
he  had  read  in  a  flash  the  news  that  his  baby  girl,  of 
whose  illness  he  had  known  before  he  was  imprisoned, 
had  passed  away.  His  grief  was  overwhelming.  His 
prison  bars  never  had  seemed  so  stern  and  so  intoler- 
able. Out  of  a  full  and  breaking  heart  he  wrote  to 
his  wife,  who  was  then  making  her  home  with  her 
brother  in  Washington  : 

.  .  .  May  God  sustain  and  comfort  you,  dearest,  and  grant 
you  strength  for  this  very  trying  day.  For  you  I  grieve,  for 
you  I  am  anxious,  and  oh,  for  you  I  pray.  I  am  not  unmind- 
ful of  your  peculiar  need.  And  for  myself  I  need  new  strength, 
new  blessing,  new  grace  from  my  loving,  tender  Father,  who 
has  taken  to  his  heavenly  home  our  darling.  If  anything  had 
been  wanting  to  make  prison  life  irksome,  to  make  these  bars 


2IO  He7i7^y  Clay  Trumbull 


and  bolts  oppressive,  the  atmosphere  of  confinement  stifling, 
and  the  thought  of  the  barriers  between  me  and  my  home 
intolerable,  the  message  you  sent  to  me  would  have  supplied 
it  Oh,  how  I  chafe  as  I  am  !  Fifteen  persons  in  these  two 
rooms  !  Where  may  I  turn  for  privacy  to  weep  or  to  pray  ? 
Even  my  words  of  condolence  to  you  must  pass  the  inspection 
of  stranger  eyes,  and  not  be  forwarded  unless  approved  by 
those  of  whom  we  know  nothing  but  the  pressure  oF  present 
power.  .  .  .  For  her  we  need  have  no  sorrow  nor  regret.  All 
the  peace,  all  the  joy  and  blessedness,  of  the  redeemed  she  is 
to  know,  without  the  long  years  of  suffering  and  sadness,  of 
temptation  and  trial,  which  so  many  must  endure.  Blessed 
be  God  for  his  mercy  to  her  ! 

With  its  message  of  comfort  and  its  expression  of  a 
father's  grief,  this  closely  written  letter  of  more  than 
forty  years  ago  reveals  yet  another  glimpse  of  the 
human  heart.  It  is  documentary  evidence  of  the 
brotherhood  of  man  that  exists  even  when  men  are 
set  over  against  each  other  for  the  time  being,  by 
sundering  differences.  For  the  letter  is  not  confined 
to  one  page,  but  runs  its  course  over  four  ample 
pages,  by  the  grace  of  the  Confederate  prison  officers, 
brother  men  with  the  Union  chaplain  in  the  common 
heritage  of  bereavement.  The  passing  of  a  little  child 
had  suspended  the  prison  regulations. 

It  was  not  many  weeks  after  this  that  the  Federal 
and  Confederate  authorities  were  acting  under  the 
terms  of  an  agreement  by  which  all  chaplains  on  both 
sides  were  to  be  unconditionally  released.  Late  in 
October,  while  Chaplain  Trumbull  lay  ill  with  a  fever 
which  well-nigh  proved  fatal,  an  order  came  for  his 
removal  to  Richmond,  presumably  on  his  way  to  free- 


A  Soldier  F7nendship 


2  I  I 


dom.  To  leave  his  friend  Henry  Camp  was  by  no 
means  easy.  "It  was  like  the  parting  of  friends," 
wrote  the  chaplain,  "when  one  is  going  out  into  the 
freedom  of  a  better  life  beyond,  and  the  other  is  to 
stay  behind.  Each  was  glad  and  each  was  sad.  It 
must  be  so." 

Northward  the  chaplain  was  taken,  under  guard, 
with  Confederate  deserters  and  conscripts,  who  were 
to  be  left  at  Wilmington,  North  Carolina,  and  upon 
reaching  Richmond,  he  was  temporarily  remanded  to 
Libby  Prison.  As  he  climbed  the  ladder  leading  to 
the  upper  floors,  he  was  welcomed  by  a  shout  from 
the  prisoners,  "Fresh  fish  !  fresh  fish  !  fresh  fish  !" — 
thus  receiving  his  initiation  into  his  third  war  prison. 

He  found  himself  among  acquaintances  at  once. 
There  was  hardly  more  than  standing-room  on  the 
rough  floors  of  the  heavily  beamed  old  warehouse. 
A  new-comer  had  small  chance  to  find  a  sleeping- 
place  in  the  Libby  just  then.  But  General  Neal  Dow 
of  Maine  was  among  the  prisoners,  and  he  claimed  the 
New  England  Sunday-school  worker  and  temperance 
advocate  as  his  own,  making  room  for  him  on  his 
straitened  floor-space. 

It  was  cold  in  the  Libby.  The  November  winds 
swept  through  the  barred  and  broken  windows,  caus- 
ing more  real  physical  discomfort  to  the  chaplain 
than  he  had  known  in  any  of  his  army  sen-ice.  He 
spent  less  than  a  week  in  this  most  famous  prison  of 
the  Civil  War,  preaching  once  at  the  request  of 
Colonel  Ely  of  Norwich,  of  the  i8th  Connecticut 
He  made  copious  notes  of  his  impressions  of  the 
place  and  its  thronging  humanit\',  and  when  it  was 


212 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


memory  was  taxed  to  its  uttermost  by  verbal  mes- 
sages from  officers  to  their  friends  at  home.  Each 
prisoner  was  put  on  his  honor  not  to  take  any  written 
message  from  any  one  inside  to  any  one  outside,  and 
this  restriction  the  chaplain,  of  course,  observed. 

"  Boat  up  !  boat  up  !  "  was  the  cry  that  was  heard 
in  the  Libby  when  the  flag-of-truce  boat  from  City 
Point  came  in,  with  orders  for  the  release  of  prisoners. 
On  the  next  day,  "  Dick  Turner,"  the  prison  inspector, 
appeared  at  the  doorway  and  sang  out,  Chaplain  H. 
Clay  Trumbull  of  the  Tenth  Connecticut ! " 

I  had  never  in  my  life,"  he  wrote  in  "  War 
Memories  of  an  Army  Chaplain,"  "been  so  glad  to 
hear  my  own  name  as  then.  I  sprang  toward  him  at 
his  call.  He  s^aid :  '  If  you  want  to  go  back  in  this 
boat,  hurry  up.' 

"  *  Is  there  time  for  me  to  run  upstairs  and  get  my 
things  ? ' 

"  '  No  ;  go  just  as  you  are,  or  not  at  all.' 

"  I  had  left  upstairs,  on  the  floor  above,  a  little 
basket  of  my  belongings,  which  I  had  brought  from 
Columbia,  but  it  was  nothing  in  comparison  with 
liberty.  I  left  all,  and  followed  him  who  gave  me 
hope  of  freedom. 

"  As  I  passed  out  from  the  Libby  and  down  Carey 
Street  under  guard,  I  looked  up  and  saw  the  glad, 
sad  faces  of  my  fellow-prisoners  crowding  the  win- 
dows of  that  gloomy  building.  Their  kindly  farewells 
made  my  heart  sick,  because  I  must  leave  them  there. 

"  *  Good-by,  Chaplain ;  I'm  glad  you're  going  home.' 

" '  God  bless  you.  Chaplain !  I  wish  I  was  going 
with  you.' 


A  Soldier  Friendship 


213 


**  *  Good-by !  good-by  ! ' 

"  These  sounds  are  in  my  ears  to-day,  as  fresh  as 
thirty-five  years  ago." 

And  this  story  of  the  prisoner  set  free,  as  the  wist- 
ful faces  of  his  fellow-prisoners  pressed  against  the 
bars  that  still  shut  them  in,  was  told  by  D.  L.  Moody 
around  the  world  to  men  who  had  only  to  answer 
the  invitation  to  leave  all  and  follow. 

"  I  went  on  the  little  steamer,  A.  H.  Shultz,  down 
the  James  River.  A  white  flag  was  above  her  bow, 
the  Confederate  flag  was  above  her  stem.  Until  the 
steamer  had  passed  the  defenses  of  Richmond  I  was 
kept  below.  As  we  neared  City  Point,  I  was  per- 
mitted to  come  on  deck.  When  I  came  in  sight  of 
the  United  States  flag  floating  over  our  flag-of-truce 
steamer  New  York,  I  could  hardly  contain  myself  for 
joy,  but  I  had  to  be  restrained  until  formally  released. 
I  was,  however,  treated  courteously  by  Captain  Hatch, 
the  Confederate  agent  of  exchange,  and  I  made  my- 
self as  contented  as  possible  until  the  hour  for  my 
transfer.  On  the  following  morning  I  was  given  over 
by  Captain  Hatch  to  Major  Mulford,  our  agent  of 
exchange,  and  my  prison  experiences  were  at  an  end. 

"  From  Major  Mulford  I  learned  more  about  my 
imprisonment  and  my  return.  My  government  had 
steadily  pressed  for  my  release.  Finally  Judge  Ould, 
the  Confederate  Commissioner  of  Exchange,  asked 
Major  Mulford  if  he  could  give  his  personal  assurance 
that  I  was  what  I  claimed  to  be,  a  simple  chaplain, 
and  not  a  spy.  The  Major  said  he  had  relatives  in 
Hartford,  where  I  lived,  and  could  easih-  ascertain 
the  truth.    The  Judge  said  if  he  was  satisfied  on  fhis 


214  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


point,  I  should  be  released.  He  also  promised  not  to 
use  to  my  disadvantage  the  Major's  silence  on  the 
subject,  if  he  found  he  could  not  vouch  for  me. 
Major  Mulford,  afterwards  General  Mulford,  had  a 
cousin  living  near  me,  connected  with  the  church  of 
which  I  was  a  member.  In  response  to  his  inquiry, 
she  spoke  of  me  in  such  terms  that  he  was  no  longer 
in  doubt.  He  told  Judge  Ould,  and  an  order  was 
sent  to  General  Beauregard  for  my  release. 

"  When  Richmond  was  taken,  a  friend  of  mine,  in 
command  at  the  Libby,  found  among  the  official 
files  an  important  paper  in  my  case,  and  gave  it  over 
to  me.  It  contained  the  order  of  Judge  Ould  for  my 
transfer  to  Richmond,  in  response  to  the  demand  of 
General  Meredith,  our  agent  of  exchange,  with  the 
protest  of  General  Jordan,  General  Beauregard's  chief- 
of-staff,  endorsed  on  it : 

*  Chaplain  H.  Clay  Trumbull  has  been  directed 
to  be  sent  to  Richmond  at  once.  He  is  a  tricky  fel- 
low, and  has  little  the  air  of  a  chaplain.  The  great 
desire  manifested  to  get  him  back,  coupled  with  the 
circumstances  of  his  capture,  make  it  doubtful  whether 
he  is  really  a  chaplain  or  a  spy.' 

"  Some  years  after  the  v/ar,  a  man,  who  then  met 
me  for  the  first  time,  said : 

Mr.  Trumbull,  you  don't  look  a  bit  like  a 
minister.' 

*'  'I  know  that,'  I  replied.  'I  once  came  near  being 
hanged  for  it.  Because  of  my  lack  of  the  conven- 
tional "  choker,"  they  proposed  to  give  me  one  of 
hemp.' " 


SAVING  LIFE  AND  SOULS  IN  THE  ARMY 


Having  a  knowledge  of  others  is  not  in  itself 
having  an  interest  in  others  ;  and  it  is  an  inter- 
est in  others,  not  a  knowledge  of  others,  that  it 
is  our  duty  to  have  and  to  show.  In  order  to 
show  an  interest  in  others,  we  must,  for  the  time 
being,  be  absolutely  forgetful  of  ourselves.  We 
must  think  only  of  those  in  whom  we  are  show- 
ing our  interest.  Our  eyes  must  be  theirs  ;  our 
ears  must  be  theirs  ;  our  whole  attention  must 
be  theirs.  Listlessness  in  such  a  case  is  hardly 
less  than  insulting.  They  must  see,  as  they 
look  at  us,  that  just  now  we  are,  in  a  sense, 
living  only  for  them  ;  that  whatever  interests 
them,  has  an  interest  to  us,  because  it  has  an 
interest  to  them.  And  we  must  be  even  readier 
to  show  an  interest  in  what  they  tell  us  about 
themselves,  than  to  show  an  interest  in  what  we 
tell  them  about  themselves.  What  they  say  to 
us  about  themselves  quickens  their  interest  in 
us,  and  strengthens  their  confidence  in  us,  more 
than  anything  that  we  can  say  to  them  about 
ourselves  or  themselves. 

An  experienced  army  chaplain  used  to  say, 
that  when  he  could  get  a  soldier  to  bring  out 
from  his  knapsack  his  little  card-photograph 
album,  and  show  the  pictures  of  mother  or  sis- 
ter, of  wife  or  child,  he  felt  sure  of  him.  The 
chaplain's  interest  in  the  soldier  had  then  an 
opportunity  of  showing  itself  beyond  mistake. 
And  this  is  a  truth  that  runs  through  every 
sphere  of  social  intercourse.  —  Ourselves  and 
Others. 


CHAPTER  XIII 


SAVING  LIFE  AND  SOULS  IN  THE  ARMY 

Chaplain  Trumbull's  prison  experiences  had  brought 
him  ver>^  close  to  the  soldier  heart  After  a  brief 
home  visit,  he  was  again  with  his  regiment,  then  sta- 
tioned at  St.  Augustine,  Florida,  and  to  the  close  of 
the  war  his  labors  in  his  army  parish  were  almost 
incessant. 

Shortly  after  his  return  he  gave  an  address  on  his 
prison  experiences,  and  at  the  close  of  the  meeting 
he  v/as  presented  with  a  field-glass  and  a  silver- 
mounted  sword,  in  token  of  the  gratitude  of  his 
regiment  for  his  unsparing  service  in  its  behalf  in 
camp  and  field. 

When  Trumbull  reached  St  Augustine  there  was 
no  Protestant  pastor  in  the  town,  and  no  army  or  post 
chaplain.  He  was  in  demand  not  only  among  his 
own  men,  but  for  public  ser\^ices  in  the  town.  He 
did  not  confine  his  work  to  the  camp,  but  responded, 
as  far  as  time  would  permit,  to  calls  for  pastoral  or 
pulpit  service  in  the  town.  Regular  ser\^ices  were 
held  by  him  in  the  Presbyterian  church  or  in  the 
Episcopal  church,  and  he  enjoyed  the  most  friendly 
relations  with  the  Catholic  priest,  whom  the  chaplain 
termed  "a  lovely  spirited  Christian  pastor." 

It  was  in  the  Episcopal  church  on  the  Plaza  that 

217 


2l8 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


the  chaplain  made  his  closing  address  in  St.  Augus- 
tine, when  the  Seventeenth  Connecticut  had  arrived 
to  relieve  the  Tenth.  Among  the  new  comers  was 
young  Anthony  Comstock,  to  whom  the  chaplain 
turned  over  the  keys  of  the  church  after  that  service, 
bidding  him  keep  up  the  meetings. 

**As  I  often  told  him  afterwards,"  writes  Mr.  Com- 
stock, he  placed  upon  me  a  very  heavy  cross.  The 
meetings,  however,  were  kept  up,  although  the  first 
meetings  after  he  left  were  so  poorly  attended  that 
once  or  twice  we  put  out  the  candles  in  the  church 
for  economy's  sake,  and  went  into  the  vestry-room, 
and  there  had  our  meeting  by  a  single  candle  light. 
These  meetings,  however,  gathered  in  a  large  number 
of  those  who  professed  faith  in  Christ  and  came  for- 
ward and  united  with  the  church.  After  I  began  my 
present  work,  in  1872,  I  had  in  the  earlier  years  fre- 
quent interviews  with  Dr.  Trumbull.  He  was  always 
a  tower  of  strength  and  comfort  to  me,  and  always 
had  a  sympathetic  word  for  my  cause  and  myself" 

In  the  chapel  tent  Mr.  Trumbull  had  hung  a  copy 
of  the  Silent  Comforter,"  a  large-paged  collection  of 
Bible  texts,  which  he  used  in  many  places  throughout 
the  war,  and  afterward  as  long  as  he  lived  day  by  day 
in  his  own  home.  A  copy  of  this  hung  in  the  mili- 
tary guard-house  of  the  provost-marshal,  where  the 
chaplain  made  use  of  it  in  his  visits  to  prisoners. 

Services  were  held  also  in  the  Catholic  chapel  of  the 
old  Spanish  fortress  San  Marco.  Within  the  fortress 
a  part  of  the  regiment  did  garrison  duty,  and  here  the 
chaplain  held  a  Sunday-school  and  mid-week  meet- 
ings, while  close  to  the  chapel  was  a  pile  of  rusty 


Saving  Life  and  Souls  in  the  Ariny  219 


cannon,  on  which  men  would  often  sit  during  the 
services. 

Through  a  barred  dungeon  door  in  the  casemated 
walls  the  chaplain  saw  a  strange,  repulsive  face  glaring 
at  him  one  day.  Certain  that  the  man  must  be  one 
of  his  parishioners,  Mr.  Trumbull  accosted  him,  and 
found  that  because  of  insubordination  he  had  been  in 
confinement  most  of  the  time  since  enlistment.  The 
chaplain  met  him  again  occasionally  after  his  release, 
but  it  was  not  until  the  regiment  had  left  Florida  for 
Virginia  that  there  was  anything  like  a  conversation 
between  the  two.  Even  the  optimistic  chaplain  had 
considered  the  man  as  comparatively  not  a  very  hope- 
ful case.  As  they  moved  northward  on  a  crowded 
transport,  the  hopeless  case  sought  the  chaplain,  and 
asked  if  he  might  talk  with  him.  Leaning  over  the 
steamer's  rail,  the  soldier  told  his  story. 

Misser  Chaplin,  you  'member  when  you  talked 
to  me  at  the  dungeon  door.  You  spoke  kind  to  me. 
You  said  you's  my  chaplin.  I  never  forgot  that, 
Misser  Chaplin.  I'm  a  rough  fellow.  I  never 
knowed  much.  I  suppose  I'm  human,  that's  about 
all.  I  never  had  no  bringing  up.  Fust  I  knowed  o' 
myself  I  was  in  the  streets  o'  New  Orleans.  Never 
knowed  a  father  or  mother.  I  was  kicked  about. 
I  came  North  and  'listed  in  the  army.  I've  had  a 
hard  time  of  it.  My  cap'n  hates  the  very  groun'  I 
tread  on. 

"  I  did  worry  my  cap'n.  And  he  hated  mc.  Ten 
months  with  ball  and  chain  !  A  hard  time  of  it  ! 
But  what  you  said  at  the  dungeon  door's  all  true. 
And  what  you  said  in  praycr-nicctin'  is  all  true." 


2  20  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


"Prayer-meeting!"  exclaimed  Mr.  Trumbull.  '*I 
never  saw  you  in  prayer-meeting  !  " 

"  No.  I  was  jus'  outside  on  those  old  cannon. 
And  now,  Misser  Chaplin,  I  want  to  do  right.  Misser 
Chaplin,  I  suppose  we's  goin'  into  a  fight,  and  I  want 
to  do  my  duty.  They  say  I'm  a  coward.  I've  never 
been  in  a  fight,  but  I  want  to  do  my  duty." 

He  had  his  wish.  After  a  fight  in  Virginia,  Lino 
was  called  by  his  captain  before  the  whole  company, 
and  was  commended  for  his  bravery.  The  chaplain 
looked  him  up. 

You've  done  bravely,  I  hear,  Lino,  and  I'm  glad 
of  it." 

"Yes,"  he  said  with  a  chuckle.  "They  call  me 
coward,  but  I  tried  to  do  my  duty.  'Taint  always 
the  frisky  ox  that's  at  the  far  end  of  the  yoke." 

While  the  regiment  was  on  its  way  north,  Henry 
Camp,  having  made  a  frustrated  attempt  to  escape 
from  Columbia,  and  having  at  last  been  exchanged, 
was  on  his  way  to  freedom  by  way  of  Libby  Prison 
and  Fortress  Monroe.  Trumbull  was  at  Fortress 
Monroe  on  May  i,  when  the  flag-of-truce  boat  from 
City  Point  arrived,  and  the  meeting  of  the  two  friends 
was  unspeakably  joyous.  It  was  very  brief,  but  they 
were  reunited  when  Camp  rejoined  the  Tenth  Con- 
necticut, then  a  part  of  General  Butler's  advance  near 
Drewry's  Bluff,  on  May  15. 

During  the  summer  of  1864  the  regiment  was  again 
and  again  under  fire  on  the  Bermuda  Hundred  front, 
on  Strawberry  Plains,  at  Deep  Bottom,  and  on  the 
Petersburg  front.  The  chaplain  kept  with  the  colors 
in  the  fighting.     He  determined  that  his  duty  was 


Saving  Life  afid  Souls  in  the  A7^my  221 


where  the  men  were  most  in  need.  His  presence  on 
the  firing  line  was  a  constant  source  of  encouragement 
to  officers  and  men  alike,  for  he  was  ready  for  any 
service  which  he  might  be  called  upon  to  render. 
He  acted  often  as  an  aide  to  Colonel  Otis,  carrying 
orders,  or  rallying  men  at  weak  points  in  the  line,  and 
his  intense  love  of  excitement  and  seeming  disregard 
of  danger  had  ample  scope  for  exercise  in  that  mem- 
orable summer. 

During  a  day  of  sharp  fighting  on  Strawberr}^  Plains, 
the  chaplain  was  constantly  exposed  as  he  moved 
among  the  men  on  the  entrenched  firing  line.  Gen- 
eral E.  D.  S.  Goodyear,  then  captain  of  Company  C, 
describes  an  incident  he  witnessed  in  which  the  chap- 
lain was  distinctly  the  central  figure.  A  six-pound 
shell,  hurtling  across  the  open,  struck  a  tree  just 
above  Chaplain  Trumbull's  head,  exploded  with  a 
rending  shock  that  splintered  the  tree,  and  hurled 
the  chaplain  to  the  ground,  in  a  rain  of  wood  and 
iron,  whirling  him  around  and  around  as  he  fell.  It 
seemed  to  the  heart-sick  onlookers  that  the  chap- 
lain must  surely  have  been  killed.  But  as  they  hur- 
ried toward  him,  he  staggered  to  his  feet,  dazed  and 
half-stunned  by  the  terrific  shock,  and  yet  entirely 
unharmed  by  the  missiles  that  had  poured  about  him 
as  he  fell. 

In  this  summer  of  1864,  Mr.  Trumbull  had  his  first 
glimpse  of  General  Grant,  and  an  extended  oppor- 
tunity to  observe  him.  On  one  occasion,  as  a  man 
on  horseback  passed  the  camp  of  the  Tenth,  on  the 
New  Market  Road,  wearing  a  private  soldier's  blouse, 
one  of  the  men  exclaimed  : 


222 


Henry  Clay  Trumhill 


Why,  there  goes  General  Grant !  " 

"  Nonsense  ! "  said  another,  that  isn't  General 
Grant.     It  doesn't  look  a  bit  like  him." 

**  Well,  I  say  it  is.  Don't  you  see  those  stars  on 
his  shoulder?  There's  only  one  man  in  this  army 
who  wears  three  stars." 

It  was  indeed  Grant  himself.  Then,  as  always 
afterwards,  Mr.  Trumbull  was  impressed  with  Grant's 
freedom  from  the  popularly  expected  signs  of  great- 
ness. He  came  into  personal  relations  with  Grant 
after  the  war,  and  learned  to  see  and  to  admire  the 
true  greatness  within  the  man,  of  which  there  was  so 
little  outward  display. 

A  chaplain's  pastoral  work  was  not  conventional. 
Upon  one  occasion  during  this  summer  in  Virginia, 
while  the  men  were  lying  in  the  open  woods  behind 
hastily  built  earthworks,  the  chaplain  was  interrupted 
in  the  writing  of  a  home  letter  by  the  sudden  ceasing 
of  a  bullet's  hiss,  as  it  noiselessly  struck  a  man  close 
by  him.  Instantly  the  chaplain  saw  that  a  young 
officer  just  behind  him  was  the  victim,  and  the  blood 
was  spurting  from  a  wound  in  his  neck.  The  look  of 
death  was  already  shadowing  his  haggard  face.  Trum- 
bull was  peculiarly  sensitive  to  the  sight  of  blood. 
In  his  later  years,  even  the  recital  of  any  story  of 
bloodshed  would  set  him  quivering  with  emotions  of 
,  shrinking  dread.  But  this  was  a  time  for  prompt 
action,  not  for  feeling.  He  thrust  his  thumb  and 
forefinger  into  the  open  wound,  seized  the  lacerated 
sub-clavian  artery,  and  while  he  thus  checked  the  flow 
of  blood,  he  sent  messengers  right,  left,  and  rear  for  a 
surgeon.     Lying  close  alongside  the  wounded  officer, 


Saving  Life  and  Souls  hi  the  Ar^ny  223 


he  talked  with  him  of  home  and  friends,  prayed  with 
him,  and  held  his  life  literally  in  his  hand,  until  the  chap- 
lain's anxious  eyes  caught  a  glimpse  of  the  green  sash  of 
the  surgeon  who  was  bending  over  him.  The  artery-  was 
taken  up,  and  the  officer  was  borne  to  the  field  hospital. 

General  Goodyear  characterizes  Trumbull  as  *'a  man 
who  had  his  eyes  wide  open  and  ears  pointing  to  the 
front.  If  there  was  any  news,"  says  the  General,  "he 
got  it  first.  Our  regiment  was  the  best  posted  regi- 
ment in  the  brigade,  because  the  chaplain  was  always 
on  the  lookout  for  anything  that  would  interest  the 
men.  And  if  there  was  any  fun  of  the  right  sort  on 
hand,  he  was  sure  to  have  a  part  in  it."  Hence  Mr. 
Trumbull  was  on  terms  of  unreserved  intimacy  with 
officers  and  men,  counting  his  ministr}^  manifold  and 
various  in  its  scope  and  purpose.  As  the  men  of  the 
picket  reserve  were  about  to  leave  for  the  outer  posts 
on  one  occasion  he  said  to  them  : 

I  just  want  to  say  that  the  Colonel  has  detailed 
me,  as  the  chaplain,  to  do  whatever  swearing  is  neces- 
sary on  this  round  of  picket  duty.  So  if  any  of  you 
men  think  there  is  a  call  for  something  in  that  line, 
just  send  for  me,  and  I'll  attend  to  it." 

Then,  as  he  afterward  moved  along  the  picket  line, 
and  heard  any  profanity,  he  called  out : 

"  Look  out  there  !  You  are  interfering  with  the 
chaplain's  work.  He'll  attend  to  all  the  swearing 
that  needs  to  be  done." 

And  the  men  themselves  would  call  out  to  a  com- 
rade if  he  swore  while  on  that  line  : 

"  Mind  your  own  business  there  !  Don't  be  doing 
the  chaplain's  work." 


2  24  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


There  was  yet  another  side  to  his  service  for  and 
among  the  men.  Corporal  J.  E.  Parmelee,  of  whose 
devotion  to  the  flag  the  chaplain  wrote  in  his  War 
Memories,"  himself  writes  of  the  part  his  chaplain 
took  in  a  time  of  crisis  : 

General  Lee  had  sent  one  of  the  best  divisions  of 
Longstreet's  Corps,  General  Field's,  with  the  deter- 
mination of  forcing  the  Army  of  the  James  back 
across  the  James  River.  The  attack  was  made  upon 
the  extreme  right  of  our  line  at  a  point  beyond  our 
line  of  fortifications.  We  were  in  the  woods.  When 
General  Field's  Corps  came  sweeping  down  upon  our 
right  flank,  I  remember  the  chaplain's  encouraging 
words,  as  he  shouted  at  the  top  of  his  voice  *  Stand  ! 
The  Tenth  Connecticut  never  falters  ! '  And  when  the 
regiment  on  our  right  began  to  waver,  he  ran  to  that 
point  and  helped  the  officers  to  encourage  the  men." 

General  Plaisted,  the  brigade  commander,  in  his 
official  report  of  the  battle  expressed  the  opinion  that 
the  conduct  of  the  Tenth  saved  the  Army  of  the 
James  from  disaster,  and  the  chaplain's  work  as  he 
rallied  the  men,  dashing  up  and  down  the  line  and 
throwing  all  his  tremendous  personality  into  word 
and  gesture,  gave  new  rigidity  to  the  line  that  had 
almost  broken. 

At  this  time,"  writes  Parmelee,  "we  had  no 
major,  and  this  promotion  was  urged  upon  Chaplain 
Trumbull.  But  he  said  that  he  felt  he  could  be  of 
more  service  to  us  to  remain  as  chaplain.  There  is 
nothing  that  commands  from  a  soldier  so  much  re- 
spect and  admiration  for  his  chaplain  as  the  habit  of 
never  flinching  from  duty." 


Saving  Life  and  Souls  in  the  Army  225 


That  Mr.  Trumbull  was  careful  to  discover  and  to 
meet  the  needs  of  his  parishioners  was  evidenced  by 
a  change  of  habits  on  his  part  by  no  means  easy  for 
one  of  his  temperament  Until  he  entered  the  army, 
he  had  been  accustomed  to  speak  extemporaneously. 
But  he  soon  found  that  the  men  with  whom  he  min- 
gled day  by  day,  and  with  whom  he  was  in  frequent 
conversation,  would  come  to  the  services  in  larger 
numbers  when  he  wrote  his  sermons  than  when  he 
did  not.  On  one  occasion,  when  he  was  preaching 
without  notes,  a  soldier  looked  in  at  the  entrance  of 
the  chapel  tent,  and  turned  away  in  disgust,  saying  to 
a  comrade,  Pshaw!  he  is  only  talking.  I  thought  he 
was  preaching."  So  the  chaplain  wrote  his  sermons 
even  "  under  the  siege  firing  until  midnight,  in  a 
splinter  proof  by  the  light  of  a  candle  stuck  in  the 
fuse-hole  of  the  upper  half  of  a  spherical  case-shot." 
Sometimes  his  preaching  was  in  the  open  air,  some- 
times in  a  chapel  tent,  or  again,  as  in  the  winter 
of  1864-65  near  Richmond,  where  the  regiment 
had  its  camp  from  November  to  March,  in  a  rustic 
chapel  built  with  great  skill  and  taste  by  the 
soldiers. 

No  phase  of  army  life  gave  Chaplain  Trumbull 
more  concern  than  the  terribly  disastrous  results  of 
the  "substitute  evil,"  a  system  that  came  to  be  a 
serious  menace  to  character  at  home  and  in  the  field. 
'•Substitute  brokers"  came  into  existence,  whose 
business  it  was  to  secure  men  to  enlist,  taking  a  large 
share  of  the  bounty  offered  by  the  state.  These 
brokers  saw  that  desertion  from  the  army  was  a  good 
risk  ;   hence  men  who  became  known   as  '*  bounty 


226 


Hen7y  Clay  Ti^umbull 


jumpers "  were  persuaded  to  enlist  and  desert  as 
often  as  opportunity  offered. 

Dr.  Trumbull  has  told  of  an  Irish- American  mother 
who  proudly  said  of  her  son  Michael  : 

It's  a  place  under  the  government  he's  been 
afther  gittin',  and  it  gives  him  very  good  pay." 
What  sort  of  a  place  is  it?  "  asked  a  friend. 

*'Well,  I'm  not  quite  shure  as  to  that.  But  I 
belave  they  call  it  'lapeing  the  bounty.'  " 

The  evil  grew  to  fearful  proportions.  Desertions 
increased.  When  at  last  the  government  was  fully 
aroused  the  executions  of  deserters  was  pushed  to 
frenzied  extremes.  Again  and  again  Chaplain  Trum- 
bull was  called  upon  to  minister  to  men  as  they  knelt 
by  the  open  grave  facing  the  fatal  firing  party.  The 
last  deserter  to  whom  the  chaplain  was  called  to  min- 
ister was  a  mere  boy,  an  underwitted  lad  who  had 
been  enticed  away  from  his  city  home  by  a  substitute 
broker.  When  he  arrived  in  camp  he  decided  that 
he  wanted  to  go  home,  and  he  started  away  in  broad 
daylight  toward  the  boat-landing.  When  he  was 
brought  back,  in  his  simplicity  he  started  to  run.  He 
was  rearrested,  and  then  sentenced  to  be  shot. 

Chaplain  Trumbull  tried  to  have  the  sentence  set 
aside.  But  the  orders  from  the  department  com- 
mander were  for  immediate  execution,  and  there  was 
no  time  to  secure  any  reversal. 

"At  first,"  wrote  the  chaplain,  '*he  gave  way  to 
an  outburst  of  childish  grief  on  being  told  that  he  was 
to  be  shot.  '  I  don't  want  to  be  killed,'  he  said. 
'Won't  the  general  parole  me?'  Having  cried  his 
first  cry  out,  he  quieted  down  and  listened  to  my 


Savmg  Life  and  Souls  in  the  Army  227 


words  of  sympathy.  His  thoughts  were  unselfishly  of 
his  home.  If  he  must  die,  he  did  not  want  his  fam- 
ily to  know  it.  'They'd  feel  so  bad  about  it,'  he 
said.  '  I  suppose  it  would  kill  'em  all.  They'd  be 
thinking  of  it  nights.  Don't  tell  'em  of  it.  I  sup- 
pose it  would  kill  my  father.' 

''After  that  first  burst  of  grief  over  his  lot  he 
seemed  not  to  be  troubled  in  the  thought  of  death. 
When  he  came  to  the  place  of  execution  he  was  in 
no  degree  disturbed  by  the  terrible  preparations.  He 
walked  to  the  open  grave,  and  looked  into  it  with 
childish  curiosity.  He  knelt  again  to  pray  as  calmly 
as  though  he  were  by  his  own  bedside. 

"  He  looked  at  the  firing  party  with  interest,  as 
though  he  saw  only  kind-hearted  comrades.  Just  as 
his  arms  were  being  pinioned,  a  little  bird  flew  over 
him.  He  turned  his  head  and  followed  the  bird  with 
his  eyes,  as  though  he  would  like  to  chase  it.  Then 
he  looked  again  at  the  muskets  of  the  firing  party, 
with  soft,  steady  eyes,  as  before. 

"  '  Let  me  kneel  on  the  ground  and  rest  on  the 
coffin,'  he  said,  as  they  fixed  him  in  position. 

"  '  No,  kneel  on  the  coffin,'  was  the  order. 

"  Hardly  had  he  taken  this  position  when  he  fell 
forward  dead,  with  every  bullet  of  the  firing  party 
directly  through  his  body — three  through  his  heart. 
He  uttered  no  sound,  nor  did  his  frame  quiver." 

But  such  scenes  as  this  did  not  reduce  the  number 
of  desertions.  The  chaplain,  in  conversation  v^nc  da)' 
with  General  —  then  Lieutenant-Colonel  —  Good}'ear, 
suggested  that  **  the  new  deserters  in  such  a  case  were 
men  who  were  already  guilty  of  the  crime  for  which 


228 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


the  others  were  executed,  and  that  the  sight  of  its 
punishment  tempted  them  to  take  flight  before  they 
were  discovered  and  brought  to  a  similar  end.  It 
seemed  evident  that  the  only  cure  for  such  a  difficulty 
would  be  the  proffer  of  immunity  to  those  who  would 
confess  their  guilt,  and  make  the  best  possible  amends 
in  the  case." 

Goodyear  rode  over  to  talk  on  the  subject  with 
General  Ord,  the  department  commander,  and  the 
result  was  Lincoln's  proclamation  of  March  ii,  1865, 
exempting  from  punishment  confessed  deserters  then 
in  service.  One-seventh  of  the  men  in  the  regiment 
at  once  confessed  to  being  deserters,  and  the  conduct 
of  that  regiment  in  the  closing  campaign  of  the  war 
disclosed  the  fact  that  these  men  were  nevertheless 
capable  of  the  highest  efficiency  and  courage. 

Through  all  that  fighting  summer  of  '64  the  chap- 
lain and  his  friend  Henry  Camp  were  together  con- 
stantly. It  was  in  September  that  Camp  received 
from  Governor  Buckingham  his  commission  as  major 
of  the  Tenth  Connecticut,  and  for  a  few  days  after  he 
had  taken  up  the  duties  of  his  new  position  there 
came  a  brief  respite  from  long  weeks  of  hard  fight- 
ing. But  on  September  28  the  regiment  moved  hur- 
riedly from  its  position  before  Petersburg  to  Deep 
Bottom,  whence  it  pushed  on  over  the  Darbytown 
road  toward  Richmond  in  two  days  of  forced  marches. 
On  October  12,  after  days  of  peculiar  privation  and 
exposure,  the  regiment  passed  out  of  the  works  near 
the  New  Market  road  in  light  marching  order,  only  to 
return  within  an  hour  or  \^vo.  That  night  Trumbull 
and  Camp  sat  together  until  past  midnight,  talking 


Saving  Life  and  Souls  in  the  Army  229 


and  writing,  and  sharing  their  evening  devotions  as 
they  retired  for  a  night  of  rest. 

At  three  in  the  morning  they  were  on  foot  again. 
The  column  moved  out  of  the  works  to  the  plains 
between  the  Darbytown  and  Charles  City  roads, 
where  the  troops  formed  for  an  attack.  For  several 
hours,  in  the  brilliant  sunshine  of  that  autumn  day, 
there  was  brisk  firing.  Shortly  after  noon  Camp 
started  down  the  road  with  a  party  of  men  under 
orders  from  the  corps  commander,  and  while  he  was 
away  the  regiment  took  up  a  position  at  the  extreme 
right  of  the  division,  in  evident  preparation  for  an 
assault  on  the  Confederate  works.  Between  these 
strong  entrenchments  and  the  Union  lines  there  was 
a  tangle  of  "slashings,"  the  chopped  and  broken 
branches  of  trees,  and  a  thicket  of  scrub  oaks,  vines, 
and  laurels,  through  which  a  dashing  charge  was 
impossible. 

The  chaplain  anxiously  hoped  that  his  friend  would 
not  return  in  time  for  that  desperate  charge.  But  he 
reached  the  line  just  in  time.  The  men  well  knew 
the  inevitable  disaster  that  must  meet  them  in  the 
bullet-swept  tangle  before  them,  but  Camp  moved  in 
and  out  among  them  with  a  cheerful  face  and  words 
of  encouragement.  The  Tenth  had  never  yet  fallen 
back,  and  it  would  not  do  so  now. 

When  the  signal  for  the  charge  was  given  Camp 
had  by  his  own  choice  the  left  of  the  front  line,  a  posi- 
tion of  vantage  in  directing  his  men,  and  one  pecul- 
iarly exposed.  For  the  first  time  in  any  fight  the 
friends  clasped  hands  and  bade  each  other  good-by. 
They  pushed  on  together  through  the  thicket.  The 


2XO 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


chaplain  turned  to  his  wounded  and  dying  soldier 
comrades  round  about  him,  while  Camp  struggled 
through  with  his  men  to  the  open  plain  beyond  the 
thicket,  and  stood  for  a  moment  to  reform  the  broken 
lines. 

"His  tall  and  manly  form,"  wrote  the  chaplain, 
was  too  distinct  a  target  to  escape  special  notice 
from  the  foe.  Waving  his  sword  he  called  aloud 
cheerily,  '  Come  on,  boys,  come  on  ! '  then  turned 
to  the  color-sergeant  just  emerging  from  the  thicket, 
that  he  might  rally  the  men  on  the  regimental  stand- 
ard. As  he  did  so  a  bullet  passed  through  his  lungs, 
and,  as  he  fell  on  his  side,  he  was  pierced  yet  again 
and  again  by  the  thick-coming  shot  His  death  was 
as  by  the  lightning's  stroke.  His  eyes  scarce  turned 
from  their  glance  at  the  tattered,  dear  old  flag,  ere 
they  were  closed  to  earth,  and  opened  again  beyond 
the  stars  and  their  field  of  blue." 

***** 

Chaplain  Trumbull  accompanied  his  friend's  body 
to  its  resting-place  in  his  Hartford  home.  His  grief 
seemed  inconsolable.  The  two  were  so  veritably 
one  that  in  his  dying  the  one  seemed  to  bear  away 
with  him  the  very  life  of  the  other.  But  the  chaplain 
did  not  permit  himself  to  forget  his  duty  to  the  cause 
to  which  his  friend  had  given  all  that  he  had.  There 
were  yet  many  months  of  service  with  the  regiment 
in  the  long  winter  before  Petersburg,  and  in  the  clos- 
ing months  of  the  war.  Mr.  Trumbull  was  urgently 
needed  in  the  Sunday-school  field  work,  but  he  saw 
that  he  ought  to  stand  with  his  comrades  to  the  end 
in  the  completion  of  his  task  and  theirs,  and  with  them 


Savmg  Life  and  Soids  in  the  Ai^my  231 

he  remained.  It  was  not  until  August  25,  1865,  that 
he  with  his  regiment  was  mustered  out,  and  he  was 
free  to  return  to  his  Connecticut  field  work. 

There  is  no  more  significant  testimony  to  his  work 
as  a  chaplain  in  his  three  years  of  service  than  a 
modest  bundle  of  faded  papers,  telling  in  a  way  which 
is  probably  unparalleled  in  the  records  of  chaplains 
of  the  Civil  War  the  story  of  the  love  and  respect  his 
comrades  bore  for  him.  From  the  brigade  head- 
quarters before  Richmond  this  petition  was  for- 
warded to  General  Alfred  H.  Terry,  Commander  of 
the  Department  of  Virginia  : 

"We  the  officers  of  the  3d  Brigade,  1st  Division, 
24th  Army  Corps,  have  the  honor  to  request  that 
Rev.  H.  Clay  Trumbull,  chaplain  of  the  loth  Conn. 
Vol.  Infty.,  receive  the  rank  of  Major  of  Volunteers 
by  Brevet,  for  distinguished  services  in  camp  and  on 
the  field.  Mr.  Trumbull  has  not  confined  his  labors 
to  his  own  regiment,  but  has  in  reality  been  the 
chaplain  of  the  brigade,  and  as  such  has  won  the  love 
and  confidence  of  all.  No  man,  certainly,  could  be 
more  faithful  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties  ;  none,  we 
believe,  more  successful. 

"  But  the  fidelity  and  efficiency  of  Mr.  Trumbull  in 
the  performance  of  his  legitimate  duties  as  chaplain 
is  not  the  only  ground  upon  which  our  request  is 
based.  Always  at  his  post  in  time  of  danger,  he  has, 
on  two  occasions  at  least,  displayed  marked  and  con- 
spicuous gallantry,  dashing  into  the  thickest  of  the 
fight  to  rally  and  encourage  the  wavering  line. 

**  We  earnestly  hope  that  our  request  may  be  favor- 
ably considered." 


232 


He7iry  Clay  Trumbull 


That  this  petition  could  not  be  granted  by  the  War 
Department  was  solely  due  to  the  fact  that  no  law 
provided  for  the  promotion  of  chaplains,  the  only 
officers  thus  debarred  from  such  recognition.  But 
General  Terry  forwarded  the  petition  with  this  en- 
dorsement : 

**The  3d  Brigade  referred  to  within  was  for  a  long 
time  a  part  of  the  division  which  I  commanded,  and 
I  am  personally  cognizant  of  the  services  of  Chaplain 
Trumbull.  No  officer  of  his  regiment  has  displayed 
more  gallantry  in  action  or  done  more  to  animate  the 
men  to  do  their  duty  than  he,  and  if  the  recognition 
of  services  asked  for  within  can  be  made,  it  could  not 
be  bestowed  on  a  man  more  worthy  than  he.  He 
is  a  brave,  high-minded  Christian  gentleman  and 
patriot." 


SECRETS  OF  POWER  IN 
WORD  AND  WORK 


Most  persons  desire  to  be  recognized  as  persons 
of  real  character.  It  is  important,  therefore,  for 
all  to  understand  that  real  character  cannot  be 
shown  by  conformity  to  the  common  standards 
of  right,  or  of  expediency,  in  one's  sphere.  To 
show  character,  one  must  consent  to  be  distin- 
guished from  others  generally.  To  be  distin- 
guished, one  must  decide  for  himself  what  to 
wear,  what  to  eat  or  drink,  how  to  bear  himself 
among  and  before  others,  what  to  believe,  what 
to  refuse  to  use,  what  to  refuse  to  do,  and  what 
to  refuse  to  believe.  Not  eccentricity  or  mere 
singularity,  but  personality, — God-reliant,  hell- 
defiant,  and  man-resistant  personality,— is  the 
basis  of  true  character.  It  is  being  one's  self, 
as  in  the  sight  of  God,  and  as  responsible 
directly  to  God,  that  shows  character,  and  that 
secures  the  recognition  of  character.  —  Character- 
Shapmg  and  Character-Showing. 


CHAPTER  XIV 


SECRETS  OF  POWER  IX  WORD  AND  WORK 

Before  Chaplain  Trumbull  was  mustered  out  of  the 
army  at  the  close  of  the  war  he  had  prepared  his 
memoir  of  Henry  Ward  Camp,  The  Knightly  Sol- 
dier," and  had  received  the  first  published  copy  while 
he  was  yet  with  the  regiment  before  Richmond.  The 
book  soon  ran  through  several  editions.  It  was  every- 
where received  with  frank  enthusiasm  as  the  best  biog- 
raphy that  the  war  had  produced,  and  its  author  had 
made  a  distinct  impression  upon,  the  public  as  a  dis- 
criminating, sympathetic,  and  faithful  biographer, 
whose  fine  sensibilities  had  enabled  him  to  give  a 
true  portrait  of  a  true  and  noble  man. 

Mr.  Trumbull  was  no  sooner  at  home  again  than 
he  was  beset  with  invitations  to  address  gatherings, 
religious,  patriotic,  and  political.  His  army  experi- 
ence had  brought  him  into  closest  intimacy  with  men 
of  many  sorts.  He  had  seen  the  human  soul  under 
stress  of  danger  and  privation  and  hardship  laid  bare 
to  the  light  which  does  not  easily  penetrate  to  any 
depth  in  the  constrained  and  muffled  life  of  the  civil- 
ian. Where  he  was  eloquent  and  forceful  before  he 
had  passed  through  these  experiences,  he  was  now 
in  his  public  speech  tense  and  vibrant  with  the  emo- 
tions awakened  by  his  army  life,  and  he  spoke  with  a 

235 


236  Henry  Clay  Trumbtill 


pathos  and  realistic  vividness  of  utterance  which  gave 
him  power  over  audiences  everywhere. 

Before  the  war  he  was  a  voluminous  letter-writer, 
an  almost  voluble  speaker.  After  the  war  his  letters 
attained  a  dignity  and  simplicity,  and  his  speeches  a 
compactness  and  sharpness  of  outline  not  by  any 
means  so  noticeable  in  his  earlier  work.  The  three 
years  had  wrought  temper  and  strength  into  the 
framework  of  his  character  as  no  other  period  in  his 
life  had  done. 

Even  before  he  had  left  the  army,  during  the  five 
months  after  Appomattox  while  the  Tenth  Connecticut 
was  still  near  Richmond,  Trumbull  began  to  receive 
proffers  of  positions  of  influence  and  responsibility. 
One  of  his  army  commanders  proposed  to  buy  a  paper 
of  national  prominence,  The  Baltimore  American,  and 
offered  Trumbull  a  one-half  interest  in  it,  if  he  would 
become  its  editor.  Another  call  came  from  a  group 
of  New  England  men  who  were  to  organize  a  corpo- 
ration for  the  purpose  of  starting  a  military  school, 
w^ith  General  Burnside  as  its  military  head,  while 
Trumbull  was  asked  to  be  his  associate  in  the  general 
educational  work  of  the  institution.  Still  another  came 
from  the  New  York  Sunday  School  Union,  who  sought 
him  as  secretary  and  general  agent,  while  pastorates 
in  cities  on  the  Atlantic  and  on  the  Pacific  coast  were 
urged  upon  him.  But  the  chaplain  had  at  no  time 
during  the  war  relinquished  his  connection  with  The 
American  Sunday  School  Union.  He  did  not  believe 
that  it  was  his  duty  to  do  so  now,  and  he  declined  to 
turn  aside  from  what  he  could  not  doubt  was  God's 
chosen  work  for  him  just  then. 


Secrets  of  Power  in  Word  and  Work  237 


In  October,  1865,  he  was  appointed  Secretary  for 
the  New  England  Department  of  the  American  Sun- 
day School  Union.  Other  missionaries  were  placed 
under  his  supervision,  his  field  was  now  the  whole  of 
New  England,  and  his  maturer  experience  was  brought 
to  bear  on  Sunday-school  problems  not  only  in  Con- 
necticut, but  in  other  states  as  well.  From  his  inves- 
tigations of  the  Connecticut  field  before  the  war,  and 
his  startling  disclosures  of  religious  destitution  in  some 
parts  of  that  state,  it  was  supposed  by  many  that  Con- 
necticut was  behind  other  New  England  states  in  the 
work  of  religious  education.  But  he  soon  found  that 
a  careful  canvass  of  the  four  western  counties  of  Mas- 
sachusetts disclosed  the  fact  that  there  was  one  town 
with  no  church  of  any  kind ;  that  three  towns  had  no 
Sunday-school,  and  that  nineteen  towns  contained  only 
one  Sunday-school  each.  Further,  he  found  that  in 
thirty  towns  containing  6,300  children  between  the 
ages  of  five  and  fifteen  only  2,100  were  claimed  as 
attending  Sunday-school.  In  Rhode  Island  he  found 
by  actual  canvass  that  two-thirds  of  the  children  were 
not  under  religious  influences,  and  even  a  greater 
proportion  was  found  outside  the  Sunday-schools 
of  Maine.    There  was  work  for  missionaries  to  do. 

Mr.  Trumbull  had  no  idle  time  on  his  hands.  He 
had  written  constantly  during  the  war  for  papers  like 
the  Hartford  Courant  and  The  Springfield  Republican, 
and  had  continued  his  contributions  to  the  religious 
press.  His  army  letters  to  the  Sunday  School  World 
teemed  with  human  interest;  his  letters  to  the  daily 
papers  were  always  picturesque  and  often  polemic, 
when  he  wrote  in  defense  of  slandered  officers  or 


238  Henry  Clay  Trumbzdl 


men,  or  attacked  abuses  originating  in  the  cowardice 
or  cupidity  of  those  who  would  not  go  to  the  field. 
Now,  with  his  widening  opportunities,  he  began  to 
put  into  definite  form  some  of  his  acquired  convic- 
tions on  rehgious  education.  He  entered  with  thor- 
oughness into  historical  studies  of  the  Sunday-school, 
and  as  early  as  July,  1866,  he  was  given  the  degree 
of  Master  of  Arts  by  Yale  College. 

Because  of  the  circumstances  in  which  he  was 
placed  he  cultivated  habits  of  work  which  enabled 
him  to  use  his  time  to  the  utmost.  He  did  much, 
if  not  the  most,  of  his  writing  on  the  cars,  carrying 
with  him  a  portfolio,  and  a  traveler's  inkstand  which 
he  would  place  upon  the  window-sill  of  the  car,  while 
he  held  his  portfolio  in  his  left  hand,  clear  of  any  solid 
support.  In  this  way  he  minimized  the  effect  of  the 
jarring  of  the  train,  and  incidentally  got  himself  into 
disfavor  with  some  of  his  acquaintances  who  thought 
that  reading  or  writing  on  the  cars  was  a  dangerous 
habit.  They  held  that  Trumbull  set  a  bad  example 
and  preached  a  harmful  doctrine  by  the  indefatigable 
use  of  his  faculties.  But  all  this  did  not  deter  him 
from  making  time  while  others  were  wasting  it. 
Before  1870  he  had  published,  aside  from  his  periodi- 
cal contributions,  biographical  sketches  of  E.  B. 
Preston  and  John  W.  Barton,  co-workers  of  his  in 
the  Sunday-school  field;  a  careful  essay  in  booklet 
form  on  Childhood  Conversion  ;  a  book  entitled  "  The 
Captured  Scout  of  the  Army  of  the  James,"  the  story 
of  a  war-time  hero ;  and  Children  in  the  Temple," 
a  book  of  more  than  three  hundred  and  fifty  pages, 
treating  of  children's  worship,  and  of  gatherings  of 


Secrets  of  Power  in  Word  and  Work  239 


children  for  religious  exercises  of  a  general  character. 
This  was  an  exhaustive  study  of  the  history  of  chil- 
dren's worship,  its  character  and  claims;  a  manual  of 
appropriate  exercises  prepared  by  himself  or  gathered 
from  widely-scattered  sources ;  suggested  Bible  les- 
sons for  the  children's  service ;  and  a  thorough  study 
of  the  essentials  of  sermons  and  addresses  to  children, 
with  specimen  discourses  from  prominent  ministers 
and  laymen. 

Mr.  Trumbull  was  given  little  rest  from  the  facing 
of  calls  to  positions  of  influence  and  of  prominence. 
He  was  invited  to  succeed  Dr.  John  H.  Vincent  in  the 
Chicago  Sunday  School  Union  when  Dr.  Vincent  left 
Chicago  for  New  York. 

Not  long  after  this,  when  the  secretaryship  of  the 
Connecticut  Board  of  Education  was  vacated  by  the 
departure  of  Daniel  C.  Oilman  to  accept  the  presidency 
of  the  University  of  California,  the  governor  of  the 
state  offered  Mr.  Trumbull  that  position,  and  informed 
him  that  a  number  of  men  had  volunteered  to  pay 
him  an  additional  sum  equal  to  the  salary  paid  by  the 
state,  if  he  would  accept  the  office. 

Following  hard  upon  this  a  well-known  insurance 
company  offered  him  a  guaranteed  minimum  income 
of  twenty  thousand  dollars  a  year,  if  he  would  become 
a  solicitor  for  that  company.  Trumbull  assured  the 
insistent  officials  of  the  company  that  they  were 
mistaken  in  supposing  that  he  could  be  as  earnest 
in  the  insurance  business  as  he  was  in  the  Sunday- 
school  work,  and  he  declined  that  offer,  as  well  as 
the  governor's. 

The  missionaries  under  his  charge,  or  within  the 


240  He7iry  Clay  Trumbull 


sphere  of  his  influence,  felt  his  power.  Missionaries 
in  the  West,  for  whose  work  New  England  Sunday- 
schools  were  giving  money,  were  expected  to  write 
letters  from  the  field  to  the  schools  from  which  such 
support  came.  He  had  supervision  of  these  letters, 
so  far  as  his  field  was  concerned,  and  he  was  charac- 
teristically particular  about  them.  Thus  he  wrote  to 
the  home  office  of  the  American  Sunday  School 
Union : 

I  wish  all  missionaries  would  date  their  letters  from  the  states 
where  they  reside.  Traverse  City  and  Tuscola  and  other  locali- 
ties are  doubtless  somewhere,  but  I  do  not  know  where.  They 
indicate  no  more  clearly  the  field  of  effort  than  would  Cedar 
Swamp,  Four-acre  Lot,  Honeysuckle  Meadow,  or  Red  Barn 
Hollow. 

Or,  again : 

 dates  at  Olivet.    Where  is  that  ?    He  also  begins  with 

the  statement  that  he  fears  he  shall  not  interest  his  corre- 
spondents.   There  is  no  need  of  his  bragging  of  that. 

Sometimes  he  was  obliged  to  ask  a  missionary  to 
cease  writing  to  one  school  or  another,  but  not  always 
with  the  result  he  hoped  for.  For  example,  in  a  let- 
ter to  headquarters  he  writes  : 

Speaking  of  grindstones  calls  to  mind.     He  still  grinds 

away  for  Middletown  First  and  Derby  South,  although  I  re- 
quested him  to  hold  up  in  April  last  Three  more  of  his 
letters  are  at  hand  this  week.  Now  all  I  can  say  this  time  is, 
that  if  he  won' t  stop  writing,  and  you  can' t  stop  him,  and  I 
can't  avoid  receiving  another  of  his  forty  times  forbidden 
scrawls,  one  of  us  ought  to  commit  hari-kari,  and  be  denied 
a  decent  burial. 


When,  in  December,  1869,  Mr.  F.  G.  Ensign,  now 


Secrets  of  Power  in  Word  and  Work  241 


superintendent  of  the  Northwest  District  of  the  Ameri- 
can Sunday-School  Union  field,  was  chosen  to  that 
office  with  the  title  then  of  secretary,  he  went  to 
Hartford  for  a  consultation  with  Mr.  Trumbull. 
"  He  took  me  to  his  house,"  writes  Mr.  Ensign,  and 
gave  me  a  clear  and  exact  outline  of  the  work  to  be 
done.  He  understood  the  needs  of  the  West  per- 
fectly. When  I  left  his  house  and  started  for  Chi- 
cago, I  understood  clearly  what  course  I  ought  to 
pursue  to  accomplish  that  which  the  Society  ex- 
pected. 

'*  I  had  never  met,  up  to  that  time,  a  man  who  could 
so  enter  into  the  life  of  another,  and  who  so  under- 
stood another's  ability  to  do  his  chosen  work  as  to 
forecast  the  practical  way  to  it  for  him.  I  realized 
that  I  had  been  with  one  of  the  wisest  of  Christian 
workers,  if  not  one  of  the  seers  of  our  age.  Every 
suggestion  he  made  for  my  guidance  was  carefully 
noted  at  the  time,  and  after  thirty-five  years  of  actual 
service  as  superintendent  of  the  missionary  operations 
of  the  American  Sunday-School  Union  in  the  North- 
west I  am  able  to  say  that  the  outline  given  to  me  by 
Mr.  Trumbull  in  December,  1869,  has  been  followed, 
and  it  has  given  to  the  cause  whatever  success  has 
been  secured." 

And  others  far  away,  or  near  his  own  home,  have 
borne  grateful  and  generous  testimony  to  Henry  Clay 
Trumbull's  influence  and  spirit  in  these  fruitful  years. 
Mr.  John  B.  Smith,  then  a  Sunday-school  co-worker 
of  his,  and  from  the  early  days  until  the  close  of  his 
life  in  1905  a  contributor  to  the  paper  to  which  Dr. 
Trumbull  gave  so  extensive  an  influence,  has  told  of 


242  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


the  "  eminently  social "  character  of  the  missionary 
secretary,  and  of  his  readiness  to  make  life  brighter 
for  all. 

"  He  could  recognize  a  man  however  rough  his 
exterior,"  wrote  Mr.  Smith,  "  and  take  him  into  fel- 
lowship. An  Irishman  of  most  disagreeable  manners 
and  a  face  almost  ugly,  but  with  a  big  streak  of  man- 
liness in  him,  used  to  work  for  me  in  my  market- 
garden  in  East  Hartford.  As  Mr.  Trumbull  was 
once  calling  on  me  he  happened  to  spy  this  man,  and 
shouted  out:  *  If  there  isn't  Mike  Collins!'  Mike's 
face  was  radiant.  The  comrades  met.  The  joy 
didn't  leave  Mike's  heart  for  a  year  at  that  greeting 
from  his  old  chaplain,  and  I  saw  that  Trumbull  loved 
and  honored  the  man." 

"  I  have  often  heard  him  say,"  continued  Mr.  Smith, 
in  commenting  upon  Trumbull's  emphasis  on  certain 
principles  of  Sunday-school  work,  *  You  can  never  be 
sure  that  you  have  given  anybody  a  clear  idea  till  he 
has  given  you  back  what  you  gave  him.'  And  he 
himself  practised  on  the  same  principle,  not  only  in 
his  teaching,  but  in  many  ways.  I  repeatedly  knew 
him  to  hire  a  hack  and  drive  across  a  toll-bridge,  and  a 
mile  and  a  half  farther,  to  my  house  to  consult  me  about 
some  matter  about  which  we  both  knew  my  advice 
would  have  almost  no  value,  and  when,  on  parting,  I 
would  regretfully  express  that  conviction,  he  would 
say,  'Well,  no  matter;  I  got  what  I  came  for;  I  see 
it  more  clearly  now.'  " 

Of  necessity  Mr.  Trumbull  was  away  from  home 
much  of  the  time.  Yet  he  was  not  forgetful  of  his 
obligations  to  Hartford.     He  could  have  no  regular 


Secrets  of  Power  in  Word  mid  Work  243 

post  of  duty  in  church  life  because  of  his  absences, 
but  his  influence  was  felt  in  no  ordinary  way  in  more 
than  one  circle  of  activity.  What  he  was  and  what 
he  did  in  his  home  field  is  graphically  described  by 
the  Rev.  Joseph  H.  Twichell,  pastor  then  and  now  of 
the  Asylum  Hill  Congregational  Church  of  Hartford  : 

"  My  earliest  recollection  of  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 
dates  back  to  some  time  in  the  '50's,  while  I  was  a 
Yale  undergraduate,  when,  passing  a  Sunday  in  the 
old  hill  town  of  Wolcott,  Connecticut, — my  ancestral 
town, — I  heard  him  address  the  congregation  in 
church  on  the  subject  of  the  importance  and  the 
needs  of  the  Sunday-school  work  in  which  he  was 
engaged.  His  appearance  and  manner  on  that  occa- 
sion I  clearly  recall, — his  very  slender  figure,  his 
smooth-shaven  face,  his .  animated,  intensely  earnest 
style  of  speech.  He  became  well  known  to  me  by 
reputation  during  the  Civil  War  in  connection  with 
his  services  as  army  chaplain.  Though  I  was  also  an 
army  chaplain,  we  were  not  military  neighbors,  and  I 
cannot  remember  that  we  ever  met  on  the  field.  But 
at  the  close  of  the  war  I  had  a  letter  from  him  saying 
that  he  was  preparing  a  memoir  of  his  beloved  com- 
rade, Major  Henry  Camp,  who  had  fallen  in  battle, 
and  asking  me  to  contribute  to  it  an  account  of  the 
Yale-Harvard  boat  race  in  1859,  in  which  contest 
Major  Camp  and  I  had  pulled  oars  together  for  the 
Yale.  This  I  was  more  than  willing  to  do,  for  to  me 
Camp  had  been  exceedingly  dear. 

"  It  was  at  the  commemoration  of  the  Yale  men 
who  had  laid  down  their  lives  in  the  war,  held  during 
commencement  week  at  New  Haven  the  following 


244  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


summer,  that,  coming  upon  one  another  in  the  crowd 
pouring  out  of  the  Centre  Church  on  the  Green,  where 
Dr.  Bushnell's  great  address  had  been  given,  we  went 
aside,  and,  seating  ourselves  on  the  steps  of  Trinity 
Church  hard  by,  made  acquaintance,  and  had  a  long 
talk  of  Major  Camp  and  other  mutual  friends,  and 
the  war  and  many  things  beside, — the  first  of  un- 
numbered such  talks  we  were  to  have  in  commg 
years.  But  that  day  I  gained  an  impression  of  his 
quality  as  a  man,  of  his  overflowing  vital  energy,  of 
the  phenomenal  quickness  of  his  mind,  of  his  humor, 
of  his  deep  affectionateness,  of  his  limitless  loyalty  to 
those  he  loved,  and  of  his  spirit  of  Christian  devotion 
and  enthusiasm,  that  all  my  subsequent  intercourse 
with  him  served  only  to  confirm  and  strengthen,  so 
that  when,  in  December,  1865, 1  went  to  Hartford  to 
begin  my  life  there  as  pastor  of  the  newly-organized 
Asylum  Hill  Church,  it  was  a  circumstance  to  me  full 
of  interest,  and  a  special  subject  of  my  self-congratu- 
lation, that  he  was  to  be  my  parishioner.  I  felt  that 
I  had  much  reason — as  indeed  I  had — to  account 
myself  fortunate  in  the  prospect  of  the  sympathy, 
fellowship,  and  co-operation  in  my  ministry  of  such  a 
man.    And  fortunate  I  was. 

"  He  preached  for  us  as  often  as  he  would.  His 
noble  sermon  that  gives  its  title  to  his  volume  entitled 
'Shoes  and  Rations  for  a  Long  March'  [1903]  was, 
I  remember,  the  first  we  had  the  privilege  of  hearing 
from  him.  It  was  seldom  that  he  sat  in  the  congre- 
gation, and  of  those  participations  in  the  life  and  work 
of  the  church  that  are  peculiar  to  the  Lord's  Day  we 
had  from  him  of  necessity  small  share.    But  this  did 


Secrets  of  Power  in  Word  and  Work  245 


not  at  all  signify  that  the  measure  of  his  profit  to  the 
church  and  to  its  pastor  was  small.  It  was  far  other- 
wise. As  regards  the  church,  he  was,  notwithstanding 
to  so  considerable  an  extent  an  absentee,  a  distinctly 
active  member  of  it.  As  he  journeyed  up  and  down 
he  bore  it  on  his  heart.  He  thought  and  planned 
for  it. 

"  Most  unmistakably  was  I,  from  the  outset,  made 
to  feel  that  he  was  very  particularly  concerned  in  my 
work  and  welfare  as  minister.  It  could  not  but  be 
that  he,  being  a  recognized  leader  in  the  Christian 
community  and  my  senior  in  age,  I  should  consider 
him  in  the  relation  between  us  of  parishioner  and 
pastor,  the  weightier  partner,  as  I  certainly  did,  and 
as  he  certainly  was.  I  ever  regarded  what  he  was  to 
me  as  of  more  consequence  than  what  I  was,  or  could 
be,  to  him.  My  mentor,  I  named  him  to  myself,  and 
thai  to  a  marked  degree  he  became.  I  had  abundant 
reason  to  know  that,  though  the  busiest  of  men  m  his 
own  sphere  of  labor,  and,  as  I  have  said,  much  away 
from  Hartford,  he  was  keeping  a  close  e\'e  on  me. 
He  was  sedulous,  on  every  opportunity,  to  inquire  of 
me  in  detail  how  things  were  going  in  the  parish. 
He  was  wont  freely  to  indicate  to  me  his  judgment  of 
the  course  in  one  and  another  regard  which  it  was 
advisable  for  me  to  adopt.  And  if  in  any  manner  I 
was  not  doing  what  seemed  to  him  best,  or  was  doing 
what  seemed  to  him  not  best,  he  frankly  told  me  of 
it,  for  which  I  am  grateful  to  him  to  this  day.  But 
never  in  either  case,  and  when  his  criticism  was  the 
least  flattering,  was  it  possible  for  a  moment  to  doubt 
his  generous  motive,  his  perfect  friendliness.    He  Iiad 


246  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


a  genius  for  friendship,  of  which  from  first  to  last  I 
experienced  every  proof 

His  total  effect  on  me  was  distinctly  and  only  that 
of  encouragement.  And  though  he  was,  in  the 
manner  I  have  intimated,  my  mentor, — to  my  great 
profit, — he  did  not  fail,  as  touching  himself  personally, 
to  honor  my  office  as  pastor.  Never  can  I  forget  his 
coming  to  my  study  once  in  deep  perturbation  of 
spirit  to  tell  me  humbly  that  he  was  in  a  sore  strug- 
gle with  temptation,  and  to  beg  me  to  pray  for  him 
that  he  might  obtain  the  victory  over  it.  Neither 
then  nor  at  any  time  did  he  impart  to  me  the  nature 
of  the  temptation,  but  I  have  since  had  reason  to 
suppose  that  it  came  in  the  shape  of  an  overture 
made  to  him  to  abandon  the  spiritual  calling  to  which 
he  was  consecrated  for  a  secular  employment  with  a 
salary  several  times  larger  than  that  he  was  receiving. 
Being  comparatively  a  poor  man,  with  a  family  of 
children,  no  wonder  he  was  tempted. 

I  can  scarcely  overstate  the  benefit  to  me,  as  his 
pastor  and  friend,  of  the  contagious  influence  of  his 
tremendous  ceaseless  energy.  He  was,  I  think,  the 
hardest  worker  I  have  ever  known.  Work,  in  fact, 
was  his  element,  the  breath  of  his  nostrils.  It  was 
when  he  was  immersed  in  action,  every  nerve  tense, 
every  faculty  in  full  play,  that  he  seemed  to  be  in  the 
state  of  equilibrium.  He  was  constitutionally  of  the 
toughest  fiber,  or  he  never  could  have  endured  the 
unflagging  pace  of  effort  that  almost  without  intermis- 
sion he  maintained  year  after  year.  As  it  was,  he  at 
times  overtaxed  his  strength,  and  had  to  slacken 
speed,  which  was  a  hardship  to  him.    Meeting  him 


Secrets  of  Power  in  Word  and  Work  247 


one  day  on  the  street  I  remarked  to  him  that  he  was 
looking  worn  and  not  well.  He  admitted  that  he  was 
so,  and  felt  himself  seriously  out  of  condition.  I 
asked  him  if  he  had  seen  his  doctor  about  it.  *  No,' 
he  said,  *  I  haven't,  and  I  don't  mean  to,  because  I 
know  perfectly  he  would  prescribe  the  one  thing  I 
cannot  bear  the  thought  of — a  vacation.'  To  be  in 
frequent  touch  with  a  spirit  so  electric  with  vitality 
and  vigor,  pitched  to  so  high  a  key  of  purpose  and 
endeavor,  could  not  but  have  a  stimulating  effect. 
I  never  came  away  from  a  half-hour  with  him  that  I 
was  not  conscious  of  being  aroused  and  summoned 
to  bestir  myself  to  a  more  diligent  performance  of 
my  duty,  which,  as  I  look  back,  I  thankfully  own 
was  worth  ever  so  much  to  me.  And  to  the  end, 
whenever  our  paths  crossed  and  we  exchanged 
greetings,  or  when  I  had  a  word  from  him  by 
letter,  or  when  by  any  means  he  was  brought 
vividly  to  mind,  I  seemed  to  be  admonished  to 
be  up  and  doing." 

A  man  who  wrote  so  much  and  on  so  many  sub- 
jects as  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  made  his  own,  could 
not  escape  the  charge  of  writing  easily.  But  he  could 
not  compose  easily,  and  this  was  increasingly  true  as 
he  wrote  more.  He  was  in  the  habit  of  making  jot- 
tings on  whatever  scraps  of  paper  he  might  have  in 
his  pocket,  and  notes  in  well-ordered  and  classified 
memorandum  books,  which  for  the  most  part  were 
seldom  carried  out  to  the  end  of  the  plan.  He  was 
systematic  in  the  extreme,  but  he  would  drop  a  sys- 
tem without  compunction  whenever  the  system  was 
about  to  enslave  him  to  the  detriment  of  his  work. 


248  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


He  exacted  systematic  habits  from  those  in  his  em- 
ploy, or  under  his  direction,  and  yet  one  hardly  knew 
that  he  was  insisting  on  that  phase  of  organization, 
because  he  seemed  to  couple  system  and  accomplish- 
ment so  naturally.  He  often  told  laughingly  of  his 
Hartford  neighbor,  Rose  Terry  Cooke,  the  writer  of 
New  England  stories  and  poems  of  true  sentiment, 
who  was  asked  if  she  "  pursued  a  system?  " 

"  Yes,"  answered  Mrs.  Cooke,  "  I  do,  but  have 
never  yet  caught  up  with  it." 

In  preparing  an  article  or  an  address  Mr.  Trum- 
bull's methods  were  unconventional.  He  would 
carry  in  his  thought  many  themes  germinating  side 
by  side,  and  coming  to  flower  only  after  long  pro- 
cesses. But  he  kept  so  many  ideas  under  cultivation, 
so  many  themes  growing,  that  his  yield  was  perennial. 
Sometimes  under  the  spur  of  an  occasion  he  would 
flash  out  impromptu  utterances ;  indeed,  many  of  his 
most  carefully  prepared  sentences  seemed  like  crea- 
tions of  the  moment  when  he  came  down  upon  an 
audience  like  a  whirlwind.  He  was  highly  sensitive 
to  the  appeal  of  the  composite  life  of  an  audience, 
speaking  up  to  him  through  individual  expressions  in 
a  sea  of  faces ;  so  sensitive  that  he  would  sometimes 
forsake  his  carefully  prepared  memory-retained  set  of 
facts,  and  launch  out  to  meet  the  human  needs  his 
sympathetic  eye  could  see  in  the  uplooking,  listening 
crowd,  whose  temper  his  preparation  had  perchance 
misconceived.  But  these  came  to  be  rare  occasions, 
for  he  knew  the  human  heart  as  few  men  of  his  day. 
His  thought  was  not  centered  in  his  topic  or  his  text, 
but  in  the  human  soul  to  which  he  had  a  burning 


Secrets  of  Power  in  Word  and  Work  249 


desire  to  carry  his  message.  That  was  the  secret  of 
his  platform  and  pulpit  power. 

From  1865  to  1875  Mr.  Trumbull  had  a  continent- 
wide  reputation  as  a  speaker.  He  began  as  early  as 
1867  to  preach  to  college  students  at  Yale,  continuing 
this  ministry  to  the  end  of  his  preaching  days  in  insti- 
tutions of  learning  throughout  the  land.  Where  a 
message  of  tense  and  vital  Christian  manhood  was 
needed,  or  sharper  definition  of  spiritual  meanings 
and  an  awakening  to  life's  choicest  opportunities, 
there  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  was  welcomed. 

Invited  to  preach  to  Williston  Seminary,  the  East- 
hampton  school  of  his  boyhood,  he  began  his  prepa- 
ration. He  took  as  his  subject  the  "  Duty  of  Being  a 
Man ; "  as  his  text,  "  Be  thou  strong  therefore,  and 
show  thyself  a  man." 

"  Having  decided  on  my  text  and  sermon  plan,"  he 
wrote,  "  I  set  myself  to  gathering  the  material  for  the 
filling  in  of  the  outline.  I  sought  special  needful 
knowledge  and  illustrative  facts  in  books  in  my  own 
library,  then  I  bought  other  books  by  the  score. 
.  .  .  Week  after  week  went  by,  and  yet  I  was  by  no 
means  ready  with  my  sermon,  or  even  prepared  for 
its  writing.  I  made  notes  of  the  material  I  would 
like  to  use  in  my  sermon ;  but  I  found  these  notes 
expanding  and  multiplying  beyond  all  my  anticipa- 
tions. As  my  sermon  was  to  touch  on  all  the  phases 
of  true  manhood,  I  must  know  about  the  proper  train- 
ing of  the  body,  the  intellect,  and  the  spirit  of  one  who 
would  have  character  as  a  true  man,  and  hence  there 
came  much  of  my  preliminary  study. 

"After  some  eleven  months  of  this  preparation.  I 


250 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


set  myself  to  arranging  my  gathered  material.  In 
order  to  have  it  fairly  before  me  for  selection,  I  made 
a  careful  index  of  the  whole,  so  that  I  might  study 
that,  and  then  choose  what  I  deemed  the  best.  I 
then  began  to  write.  It  was  only  after  some  thirteen 
months  from  the  time  I  undertook  this  mission  that 
I  had  a  sermon  ready  for  its  preaching." 

That  sermon  was  not  dashed  off.  Possibly  the 
method  of  its  preparation  had  something  to  do  with 
the  calls  that  came  to  the  preacher  for  its  repetition 
at  Amherst  and  Williams  and  Yale.  Be  that  as  it 
may,  it  was  the  method  that  Mr.  Trumbull  followed 
in  all  his  sermon  preparation. 

While  the  missionary  secretary  for  New  England 
concentrated  his  efforts  on  his  chosen  field,  his  radio- 
activity was  intense.  Whether  speaking  at  the  Bunker 
Hill  celebration  in  Charlestown  in  1867  with  Charles 
Sumner  and  Richard  H.  Dana,  or  arousing  his  army 
comrades  to  vociferous  and  prolonged  applause  in  his 
stirring  address  at  the  Army  of  the  James  reunion  in 
Boston  in  1868,  or  writing  in  the  same  year  vivid  and 
picturesque  letters  from  the  South  to  home  papers, 
describing  the  conditions  of  reconstruction  days, 
Trumbull  was  keenly  alive  to  his  opportunities  and 
his  surroundings. 

He  must  share,  too,  in  the  very  practical  and  com- 
monplace duties  of  citizenship,  striking  at  evils,  local 
and  national,  and  encouraging  others  to  do  likewise. 
No  man  could  be  more  intolerant  of  corporate  soul- 
lessness  than  Mr.  Trumbull  always  was.  In  his 
opinion  a  public  franchise  was  not  to  be  used  without 
regard  to  public  comfort.    Upon  one  occasion  he 


Secrets  of  Power  in  Work  and  Work  251 


was  remonstrating  with  the  superintendent  of  a  local 
road  against  annoyances  to  which  passengers  were 
subjected,  when  the  superintendent,  with  a  good  deal 
of  asperity,  blurted  out,  "  You  talk  as  if  this  railroad 
was  run  for  the  especial  inconvenience  and  annoyance 
of  its  passengers." 

"  I  did  not  intend,"  Trumbull  answered  with  un- 
natural calm  and  formality,  to  charge  what  has  so 
naturally  suggested  itself  to  your  mind,  and  with 
such  suspicious  spontaneity,  but  if  such  be  your 
design,  I  can  only  say  you  have  enjoyed  unusual 
success." 

When,  during  reconstruction  days,  there  arose  at 
the  North  the  feeling  among  many  that  only  Repub- 
licans ought  to  be  taken  into  account  in  legislation, 
the  attempt  to  enact  the  infamous  "  Force  Bill " 
aroused  his  deepest  indignation.  He  was  confined 
just  then  to  his  home  by  illness,  but  not  shut  out 
from  doing  his  duty  as  a  citizen.  He  wrote  three 
letters,  one  to  General  Joseph  R.  Hawley,  then  a 
member  of  Congress,  simply  to  let  him  know  how 
angry  he  was ;  one  to  Marshall  Jewell,  who  had  been 
Governor  of  Connecticut,  and  who  was  then  Post- 
master-General in  Grant's  Cabinet,  to  assure  him 
that  "if  lovers  of  right  and  justice,  South  and  North, 
should  rise  up  to  resist  that  great  wrong  by  force  of 
arms,  I  would  be  with  them  to  the  death  ;  "  and  the 
third  to  Senator  John  B.  Gordon  of  Georgia,  the 
famous  General  of  the  Confederate  army,  to  assure 
him  that  a  Union  soldier  and  solid  Republican  was 
with  him  and  his  friends  in  his  opposition  to  the 
Force  Bill,  and  would  be  to  the  last. 


252  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


In  answer  came  a  letter  from  General  Hawley,  say- 
ing, "  God  bless  you,  Chaplain !  I  like  a  man  who 
can  get  mad.  I  then  know  what  he  means.  .  .  .  After 
reading  your  letter  I  decided  to  make  a  speech  against 
it  and  I've  made  it."  From  Marshall  Jewell  came : 
"  Dear  Chaplain,  after  reading  your  vigorous  letter  I 
drove  up  to  the  President's  with  it,  and  told  him  I 
wanted  to  show  him  how  a  Union  chaplain  felt. 
Then  I  read  him  your  letter.  He  said  he  knew 
Chaplain  Trumbull,  and  he  didn't  wonder  he  felt  that 
way.  He  hoped  that  the  proposed  wrong  action 
wouldn't  pass."  Then  from  General  Gordon  came  a 
letter  thanking  the  chaplain  for  his  words.  He  said 
that  on  reading  it  he  had  stepped  across  the  Senate 
chamber  and  asked  the  two  senators  from  Connecti- 
cut, ex-Governor  Buckingham  and  General  Ferry,  if 
they  knew  Chaplain  H.  Clay  Trumbull  of  Connecticut. 
They  said  they  did,  and  that  he  was  the  peer  of  any 
man  on  the  floor  of  that  Senate.  Then  Senator  Gor- 
don had  incorporated  the  letter  with  the  Connecticut 
Senators'  comment  into  a  speech  he  was  making 
against  the  Force  Bill. 

While  strictly  a  party  measure,  the  bill  was  never- 
theless defeated.  "  I  am  glad  to  this  day,"  wrote  the 
chaplain,  "  that  I  yielded  to  a  good  impulse  to  ex- 
press myself  heartily  against  a  proposed  wrong,  even 
though  there  seemed  to  be  little  hope  of  doing  so 
successfully.  It  is  always  safe  to  do  right,  and  to 
express  oneself  against  wrong,  even  though  there 
seems  little  hope  of  doing  good  through  the  expres- 
sion." 


LEARNING  TO  SEE  SPIRITUAL  TRUTH 


As  it  is  in  seeing  with  the  natural  eye,  so  is  it 
in  the  realm  of  mental  and  of  spiritual  vision.  One 
man  sees  all  that  he  cares  to  see,  because  he 
sees  all  that  he  supposes  there  is  to  be  seen,  in 
the  direction  of  knowledge  or  of  faith,  at  his  first 
looking  in  that  direction.  Another  man  is  sure 
that,  because  he  has  seen  something  as  he  looked 
thither,  there  must  be  a  great  deal  more  there 
for  him  to  see,  if  only  he  will  continue  to  look 
expectantly  ;  for  there  is  always  more  to  be  seen, 
in  any  and  every  direction,  by  him  who  expects 
to  see  more  and  more.  Just  here,  indeed,  is  the 
line  of  marked  distinction  between  the  true 
scholar  and  the  vain  pedant.  The  one  sees  ; 
the  other  supposes  he  has  seen.  The  one  sees 
more  and  more  ;  the  other  saw  it  all  the  first 
time  he  looked.  The  one  will  make  progress  in 
knowledge  and  in  faith  as  long  as  he  lives  ;  the 
other  reached  the  limit  of  his  progress  when  he 
opened  his  eyes  to  the  light  of  day.  The  one 
has  no  conception  of  any  light  or  sight  beyond 
that  which  was  his  at  the  earliest  hour  of  his 
life's  morning  ;  the  other  is  always  in  that  path- 
way of  "  the  light  of  dawn  that  shineth  more  and 
more  unto  the  perfect  day." — Seeing  and  Being. 


CHAPTER  XV 


LEARNING  TO  SEE  SPIRITUAL  TRUTH 

A  street  boy,  with  a  piece  of  smoked  glass,  can  see 
the  spots  on  the  noon-day  sun.  It  takes  the  keen- 
eyed  scientist  with  his  spectroscope  to  discern  the 
brighter  colors  of  every  ray  of  the  sun  in  its  course. 
Similarly,  every  preacher  can  perceive  the  defects  in 
the  sayings  and  doings  of  a  young  man  just  begin- 
ning to  work  for  his  Master.  But  only  the  superior 
lover  of  Christ  and  of  his  fellows  can  recognize  in  a 
young  worker  indications  of  promise  that  are  worthy 
of  cultivation  and  development.  And  therefore  it  is 
that  such  a  man  as  Horace  Bushnell  incidentally  does 
so  much  in  bringing  out  and  bringing  up  men  whom 
a  lesser  man  would  never  have  deemed  worthy  of 
special  notice  and  effort  at  training." 

Thus  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  gave  grateful  expression 
to  his  disciple-love  for  Bushnell,  more  than  fifty  years 
after  his  first  meeting  with  that  seer  of  the  nineteenth 
century.  For  Horace  Bushnell  was  nothing  less  than 
that, — a  prophet  of  vision,  whose  philosophical,  specu- 
lative, discerning  mind  gained  an  independent  grasp 
of  spiritual  truth  by  daring  exploration,  a  master)'  of 
expressive  language  by  rigid  training,  and,  through 
startling  convictions  and  unconventional  ways  of  stat- 
ing truth,  the  bitterest  animosity  and  the  warmest 

255 


256 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


devotion  that  could  well  be  accorded  a  modern  re- 
ligious leader. 

It  was  at  a  meeting  of  friends  of  the  Hartford 
City  Missionary  Society,"  wrote  Dr.  Trumbull,  "in 
the  social  parlors  of  the  Pearl  Street  Congregational 
Church,  of  which  Dr.  Beadle  was  the  new  pastor,  that 
my  first  acquaintance  was  made  with  good  Dr.  Bush- 
nell.  And  that  indeed  was  a  new  starting-point  in 
my  religious  life,  to  which  I  ever  look  back  gratefully. 
As  the  young  superintendent  of  the  Morgan  Street 
Mission  School, — where  Dr.  Bushnell's  eldest  daugh- 
ter, the  poet-saint,  was  my  valued  helper  as  a  teacher 
— I  was  at  this  meeting,  following  Father  Hawley 
with  a  statement  of  the  possibilities  and  needs  of  the 
city  mission  field.  Dr.  Bushnell  sat  in  a  chair  just 
before  me,  showing  a  kind  interest  in  my  words. 

*'At  the  close  of  the  meeting  he  stepped  up  and 
gave  me  greeting,  and  expressed  an  interest  in  me 
and  my  work.  He  said  he  should  be  glad  to  aid  me 
at  any  time  and  in  any  way  in  his  power.  That  was 
his  first  helpful  work  as  my  personal  teacher. 

*'  Dr.  Bushnell  meant  what  he  said  at  that  time. 
From  that  hour  he  did  aid  me  in  my  religious  think- 
ing and  in  my  Christian  living  and  doing.  .  .  .  His 
greatest  service  to  me,  as  it  has  been  to  many 
another,  was  in  bringing  me  to  see  that .  .  .  Bible  truth 
at  the  best  suggests  to  us  far  more  than  it  can  define." 

Up  to  the  time  of  his  more  intimate  intercourse 
with  Bushnell,  Mr.  Trumbull  was  a  literalist  in  bib- 
lical interpretation,  having  little  or  nothing  of  that 
peculiarly  Oriental  cast  of  mind  which  he  acquired  in 
later  years.    On  the  other  hand,  Bushnell's  most  dis- 


Learning  to  See  Spiritual  Truth  257 


tinctive  contribution  to  the  religious  thought  of  the 
day  was  his  "Essay  on  Language"  in  his  volume 
"God  in  Christ,"  given  again  in  its  substance  in  his 
**  Building  Eras  "  volume,  under  the  title  "  Our  Gospel 
a  Gift  to  the  Imagination." 

That  sermon,  or  essay,  as  Dr.  Trumbull  puts  it, 
aims  to  show  that,  necessarily,  the  truth  concerning 
the  spiritual  and  the  infinite  cannot  be  stated  in  pre- 
cise human  language,  since  all  human  words  have  a 
human  origin  with  human  limitations.  Such  words, 
when  employed  to  convey  truth  which  is  beyond  the 
realm  of  sight  and  sense,  have  their  main  value  in 
suggesting,  not  in  defining  the  higher  meaning." 

In  the  very  title  there  was  a  challenge.  It  was  not 
easy  for  men  to  conform  their  habits  of  biblical  inter- 
pretation to  Bushnell's  theory  of  the  failure  of  human 
language  to  exactly  express  the  spiritual  and  the 
infinite,  and  to  his  belief  in  the  supremacy  of  sugges- 
tiveness  where  words  are  used  to  approach  spiritual 
meanings.  Views  like  this  did  not  appeal  at  first  to 
Trumbull,  but  they  came  to  be  so  veritably  his  own 
that  all  his  Bible  study  and  Bible  exegesis  were  shot 
through  and  through  with  that  golden  thread.  When 
Bushnell  was  attacked  theologically,  Trumbull  had  a 
part  in  defending  him  in  the  public  prints. 

As  the  two  men  came  to  know  each  other  in  the 
years  immediately  following  the  war,  they  would  take 
long  walks,  discussing  problems  ot  life  and  thought, 
Bushnell  the  while  leading  his  young  friend  "out 
from  the  bondage  of  dead  literalism  .  .  .  into  the 
larger  liberty  of  God's  truth  as  beyond  human  ex- 
pression."   Bushnell  longed  to  have  Trumbull  in  the 


258  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


pastorate,  and  he  presented  to  him  again  and  again 
invitations  to  prominent  churches,  hardly  deeming 
the  Sunday-school  work  of  sufficient  scope  and  value 
to  claim  his  young  friend's  talents  permanently. 

Meeting  me  on  the  street  one  day,"  wrote  Trum- 
bull, Dr.  Bushnell  said  he  wanted  to  have  a  serious 
talk  with  me,  and  he  asked  me  to  name  a  day  when 
he  could  find  me  at  my  home.  I  named  a  time,  and 
at  the  appointed  hour  he  called,  with  General  Joseph 
R.  Hawley. 

Dr.  Bushnell  had  come  with  a  proposition  to  me 
from  one  of  the  Hartford  churches  to  be  its  pastor. 
He  urged  my  acceptance  of  it  as  he  alone  could  urge 
a  cause.  He  considered  both  the  church  in  its  needs 
and  my  individual  mission  and  duty.  He  said  I  was 
known  to  the  people  and  I  knew  them.  It  was  no 
uncertain  experiment  to  which  I  was  called.  As  an 
inducement  he  promised  to  be  one  of  the  parish,  and 
to  assist  me  by  preaching  as  often  as  he  could. 

General  Hawley,  who  already  attended  there,  and 
was  a  leader  in  its  choir,  urged  my  acceptance  of  the 
call  in  the  name  of  the  young  men.  Yet  neither  he 
nor  General  Hawley  would  consent  to  my  giving  an 
answer  or  discussing  the  matter  at  that  interview.  I 
was  asked  to  think  it  over  before  giving  any  answer. 
This  I  did,  and  refused  that  call,  as  every  other  that 
would  remove  me  from  the  Sunday-school  field  as  my 
chief  one." 

In  1869  the  Connecticut  Sunday-school  workers 
reorganized  the  association  whose  state  convention 
work  had  been  discontinued  with  the  outbreak  of  the 
war,  and  Mr.  Trumbull,  who  was  the  prime  factor  in 


Learning  to  See  Spiritual  Triith  259 


the  reorganization,  persuaded  Bushnell  to  preach  the 
opening  sermon  at  the  convention.  **  God's  Thoughts 
Fit  Bread  for  Children"  was  his  sermon  tide.  The 
preacher  had  come,  in  the  course  of  the  years,  into 
a  higher  conception  of  the  Sunday-school,  and  not 
long  before  his  death  he  said  to  the  Sunday-school 
missionary,  one  day  as  they  met  on  the  street : 

Trumbull,  you  knew  better  than  I  did  where  the 
Lord  wanted  you.  I  honestly  thought  the  pulpit  was 
a  bigger  place  for  you,  and  I  tried  to  get  you  into  it. 
But  now  I've  come  to  see  that  the  work  you  are 
doing  is  the  greatest  work  in  the  world."  Then,  after 
a  moment's  pause,  he  added,  Sometimes  I  think  it's 
the  only  work  there  is  in  the  world." 

It  was  while  under  the  stimulus  of  Bushnell's  teach- 
ing that  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  made  his  first  inde- 
pendent attempt  at  close  exegesis,  in  a  study  of  the 
Third  Commandment,  with  especial  reference  to  the 
significance  of  "name."  He  concluded  from  his 
studies  that  to  **  ^  take  ...  in  vain'  the  name  of  Jeho- 
vah as  our  God  wais  not  to  speak  or  write  it  pro- 
fanely, but  was  to  claim  a  right  to  uplift  or  bear  it 
without  doing  this  in  sincerity  and  reverence."  To 
the  enthusiastic  explanation  of  this  study  Bushnell 
listened  heartily  and  sympathetically  as  they  drew 
near  the  end  of  their  walk  one  day. 

"  I  see,  Trumbull  ;  I  see.  So  that  commandment 
is  not  against  mere  profanity,  as  we  ordinarily  under- 
stand it,  but  it  is  against  hypocrisy,  which  is  a  great 
deal  worse.  Being  insincere  or  hypocritical  is  a  vast 
deal  more  than  merely  saying  words  that  we  ought 
not  to." 


26o  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


When  they  were  about  to  part  Bushnell  grasped 
his  companion's  hand,  exclaiming  earnestly  : 

**  Trumbull,  you've  given  me  a  great  truth,  and  I 
thank  you." 

Thus  Dr.  Bushnell  was  always  ready  to  learn  from 
his  pupils,  and  he  was  too  great  a  man  to  pose  as  a 
** great"  man.  When  he  wrote  his  volume  on  "For- 
giveness and  Law"  he  read  the  manuscript  to  his 
brethren  in  the  Hartford  Ministerial  Association,  so 
that  he  might  have  the  benefit  of  their  criticism. 
This  book  was  intended  to  supplement,  and,  in  a 
sense,  to  modify,  the  views  expressed  in  his  book, 
"  The  Vicarious  Sacrifice,"  which  had  been  violently 
attacked.  ''Forgiveness  and  Law"  was  an  illustra- 
tration  of  his  willingness  to  change  his  opinions  as 
new  light  came  to  him. 

"It  is  undoubtedly  true,"  wrote  Dr.  Trumbull, 
"that  the  storm  of  opposition  raised  against  Dr.  Bush- 
nell in  his  earlier  ministry,  by  representatives  of  dif- 
ferent schools  of  theological  thought,  was  rather 
because  of  the  havoc  made  with  their  pet  forms  of 
dogma  by  his  attacks  on  all  human  explanations  of 
spiritual  truths  as  necessarily  incomplete  and  partial, 
than  because  of  people's  belief  that  he  directly  de- 
nied, or  squarely  took  issue  with  any  biblical  decla- 
ration of  a  truth,  vital  or  less  important. 

"  When  he  stated  and  applied  a  great  truth  in  the 
realm  of  character  or  action  or  providence,  he  quick- 
ened thought  and  carried  conviction.  Even  men 
who  were  prejudiced  against  him  as  'heretical'  or 
*  unsound  *  theoretically,  were  ready  to  admit  the 
exceptional  value  of  his  thinking  and  teaching  in 


Learning  to  See  Spiritual  T^^uth  261 


other  realms.  It  was  only  when  he  opened  fire  on 
the  earthworks  of  the  defenders  of  a  formal  sys- 
tem of  doctrine  that  he  had  to  meet  the  return 
fire  from  enemies  all  along  the  line, — front,  flank, 
and  rear." 

Trumbull  did  not  follow  his  teacher  blindly,  or 
without  reserve.  When  Bushnell  himself  tried  to  in- 
dicate or  define  the  nature  and  necessity  and  limits" 
of  the  "Atonement,"  and  in  his  "Forgiveness  and 
Law "  endeavored  to  define  spiritual  and  infinite 
truths  so  that  they  might  be  conveyed  to  the  human 
mind  with  no  possibility  of  misconception,  Trumbull 
saw  that  these  volumes  "  at  the  best,  were  but  essays 
in  the  direction  of  the  limits  of  the  illimitable."  He 
said  to  Bushnell  : 

"  You  must  remember,  Doctor,  that  you  have  taught 
us  that  these  greatest  truths  cannot  be  expressed  in 
human  language.  /  was  slow  to  learn  this,  but  at 
last  you  got  it  into  even  me,  through  your  *  Our 
Gospel  a  Gift  to  the  Imagination.'  Then  having  con- 
vinced us  of  the  utter  futility  of  such  an  attempt,  you 
undertake  it  yourself,  and  you  wonder  that  we  do  not  at 
once  accept  as  final  your  definitions  of  forgiveness  and 
salvation,  and  their  relations  to  law.  You  know.  Doc- 
tor, how  great  I  think  you  are,  and  how  I  prize  your 
opinions,  and  I  assure  you  I  am  ready  to  admit  that 
when  we  get  beyond  the  realm  of  the  finite  I  shall 
probably  see  that  you  have  been  nearer  right  in  your 
thoughts  and  ideas  than  anybody  else.  But  as  we 
are  here  and  now,  I  don't  think  that  God  intends  me 
to  feel  that  his  truth  on  these  subjects  is  disclosed 
and  defined  by  your  explanations  of  them." 


262  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


Trumbull  realized  that  these  were  venturesome 
words,  but  he  knew  that  Dr.  Bushnell  liked  frank 
opinions  concerning  his  views.  Nor  was  the  great 
thinker  unmoved  by  such  opinions.  On  one  occasion 
Trumbull  heard  him  preach  in  the  South  Church  his 
sermon  on  "The  Coronation  of  the  Lamb."  He  was 
uplifted  by  the  sermon  as  a  whole,  but  as  he  after- 
wards told  Dr.  Bushnell,  he  could  not  give  assent  to 
certain  incidental  references  to  his  peculiar  views  of 
sacrifice  and  atonement." 

A  few  weeks  later  he  heard  Bushnell  preach  the 
same  sermon  in  the  Asylum  Hill  Church.  With  Dr. 
Philip  Schaff  he  joined  the  preacher,  and  walked 
down  the  hill  with  him. 

Trumbull,"  said  Bushnell,  *'I  was  disturbed  when 
I  saw  you  come  in  this  morning." 

**  How  so?  "  asked  the  other. 
Why,  I  said,  *  There's  Trumbull.     He's  come  to 
hear  me  preach,   and   this   is  the  very  sermon  I 
preached  the  last  time  he  heard  me.'  " 

"Well,  Doctor,  when  I  saw  by  the  hymns  that  you 
were  to  preach  that  sermon,  I  was  more  than  glad,  for 
I  think  I  can  always  get  more  out  of  one  of  your 
sermons  on  the  second  hearing  than  on  the  first.  I 
watched  this  one  with  especial  care  this  morning,  and 
I'll  tell  you  frankly  that  it  didn't  seem  to  jar  on  me 
this  time,  at  the  points  I  talked  over  with  you,  as  it 
did  the  other  time." 

"  I  think  quite  likely,  Trumbull.  They  were  not 
there.  After  that  talk  with  you,  I  went  home  and 
looked  that  sermon  over.  I  said  to  myself,  *  I've 
stuck  too  much  of  Bushnell  into  this.    Those  things 


Learning  to  See  Spiritual  Truth  263 


are  not  essential  here.  If  they  trouble  Trumbull 
they  may  trouble  somebody  else.'  So  I  struck 
them  out." 

One  of  Bushnell's  distinctive  characteristics  in  ser- 
mon writing  was  the  framing  of  a  title  which  should 
embody  as  completely  and  as  concisely  as  possible 
the  essence  of  the  sermon.  The  text  and  title 
taken  together  were  often  a  whole  sermon  in  them- 
selves. 

That  this  characteristic  made  a  vivid  impression  on 
Mr.  Trumbull  is  readily  seen  in  the  titles  he  gave  to 
his  own  writings,  when  he  entered  the  field  of  religious 
journalism,  and  in  his  sermon  preparation  as  well. 
He  often  worked  harder  and  longer  over  the  title  of  a 
sermon  or  an  editorial  than  he  did  over  the  elucida- 
tion of  the  theme  itself  Indeed,  he  framed  his  title 
first,  and  until  he  could  do  that,  until  he  could  express 
his  thought  concisely,  succinctly,  he  knew  that  the 
thought  was  too  hazy  to  work  out.  Titles  chosen  at 
random  from  his  addresses  and  editorials  show  his 
mastery  of  this  method, — Heroism  in  Unfought 
Battles,"  "  Inclination  a  Hindrance  to  Success,"  "The 
Gain  of  a  Contracted  Sphere,"  "  Having  Strength  to 
be  Weak,"  '*  Our  Duty  of  Making  the  Past  a  Success," 
— these  embody  the  very  essence  of  the  editorial  or 
sermon  wrought  out  from  each.  Thus  Bushncll  stim- 
ulated him  to  make  use  of  his  power  of  insight,  and  of 
concentration  in  expression,  so  that  at  the  vcr}'  start 
of  an  address  or  of  an  article  he  could  command  at- 
tention ;  while  in  the  end,  after  his  dissertation  had 
been  forgotten,  the  essence  of  it  should  linger  in  the 
memory  in  a  pungent  title. 


264  Henry  Clay  T^^umbull 


Nothing  that  Dr.  Trumbull  told  of  his  intercourse 
with  Bushnell  more  felicitously  or  characteristically 
disclosed  the  secret  of  the  seer's  power,  or  the  secret 
of  his  influence  over  this  pupil  of  his,  than  one  of  the 
homely  and  illuminating  sayings  that  fell  from  Bush- 
nell's  lips  in  conversation.  *'One  day,"  wrote  Dr. 
Trumbull,  as  I  was  walking  with  him,  and  he  had 
been  pouring  out  the  treasures  of  his  rich  thoughts 
for  my  benefit,  I  burst  out  with  : 

*''0  Doctor,  you  are  simply  grand  !  How  good 
it  is  to  be  with  you  !  There's  no  one  in  the  world 
like  you' 

"  *  Oh,  no,  Trumbull  !  I  just  look  at  truth  from 
another  corner  of  the  room,  that's  all.' 

But  who  like  him  could  find  that  comer  ?  And 
what  a  privilege  it  was  to  hear  him  tell  what  he  had 
seen  as  he  stood  there  !" 


LIVING  THE  LIFE  OF  PRAYER 


There  is  no  one  of  us  who  can  manage  his  own 
affairs  as  well  as  God  would  manage  them  for 
him.  Left  to  ourselves,  we  are  sure  to  make 
fools  of  ourselves. 

It  is  time  gained,  rather  than  time  lost,  which 
is  given  to  prayer  before  beginning  a  day's  work. 
If  one  must  start  his  work  a  little  before  day- 
light, he  would  do  well  to  start  praying  a  good 
while  before  daylight. 

Hardly  anything  frightens  us  more  than  a  ful- 
filled promise  of  God.  When  he  does  just  what 
lie  said  he  would  do,  trembling  and  astonishment 
take  hold  on  us.  — From  editorial  paragraphs. 


CHAPTER  XVI 


LIVING  THE  LIFE  OF  PRAYER 

Tracking  the  story  of  these  years  through  his 
diaries  of  events,  one  is  amazed  at  the  number  of 
personal  interviews  Mr.  Trumbull  was  able  to  com- 
bine with  the  other  duties  of  the  day  and  night.  His 
habit  of  writing  on  the  cars  disposed  of  much  work 
that  would  have  occupied  him  at  home.  Yet  he  was 
constantly  meeting  in  travel  those  with  whom  he 
wished  to  converse.  He  held  that  his  work  with 
individuals  was  his  chief  work,  and  he  would  drop 
his  pen  for  a  talk  with  a  friend  or  acquaintance  just 
as  readily  as  he  would  take  it  up  again  when  the  con- 
versation with  its  opportunity  was  closed.  He  could 
take  hold  and  let  go  instantly  in  any  work  that  en- 
gaged his  attention,  seeming  to  turn  with  his  whole 
being  from  one  thing  to  another  without  friction  or 
waste  of  time.  Bundle  of  nerves  though  he  was,  he 
could  detach  himself  from  the  pressure  of  thronging 
duties,  from  the  fetters  of  physical  ailments,  and  even 
from  grief  itself,  and  apply  himself  wholly  to  the  one 
duty  of  the  hour  with  marvelous  concentration. 

Even  his  library  was  not  secluded.  It  was,  indeed, 
the  play-room  and  the  livmg-room  of  his  home,  as 
well  as  his  work-room.  He  could  write  or  read  with 
all  the  little  noises  of  the  household  going  on  about 

267 


2  68  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


him,  though  he  was  by  no  means  oblivious  to  them. 
And  as  he  worked,  he  kept  track  of  any  conversation 
in  the  room,  and  would  comment  upon  it  in  his  lively 
fashion,  turning  as  quickly  to  his  writing  again. 

But  this  distinctively  social  being,  this  man  of 
friendly  address,  found  it  by  no  means  easy  to  keep 
a  certain  resolve  made  very  early  in  his  Christian  life, 
— the  determination  to  speak  a  word  for  Christ  to  any 
individual  with  whom  he  might  be  associated  in  such 
a  way  that  he  could  properly  choose  the  subject  of 
conversation.  He  had  many  occasions  to  know  how 
hard  it  is  to  make  up  one's  mind  that  now  is  the  time 
to  speak,  but  none  more  rich  in  God-given  lessons 
than  one  that  came  to  him  during  a  sojourn  in  the 
South  in  1868,  in  company  with  a  young  relative  of 
"  The  Knightly  Soldier,"  who  went  there  in  search 
of  health.  The  journey  took  the  chaplain  and  his 
companion  through  scenes  that  were  filled  with  sad 
associations,  for  they  traversed  memorable  battle- 
fields, and  their  eyes  rested  upon  waste  and  desola- 
tion everywhere. 

The  chaplain  with  his  ready  pen  sent  home  travel 
letters  to  secular  and  religious  press,  picturing  with 
minute  faithfulness  post-bellum  conditions  in  the 
South.  The  journey  was  extended  to  many  localities, 
but  it  was  in  Florida  that  a  life-long  impression  was 
made  upon  Mr.  Trumbull,  not  originating  in  any  re- 
collection of  the  four  years'  conflict,  but  in  a  battle 
with  a  foe  which  is  peculiarly  the  Christian's  foe, — 
that  subtle,  paralyzing  poison  of  reluctance  to  speak 
to  another  of  Jesus  Christ. 

The  two  friends  took  up  their  abode  in  a  Florida 


Living  the  Life  of  Prayer  269 


boarding-house,  where  dwelt  also  a  young  couple 
from  the  North  who  had  tried  their  best  to  find  other 
quarters  when  they  heard  that  an  army  chaplain  was 
about  to  arrive,  Mr.  Trumbull  exerted  himself  to 
win  the  confidence  of  the  young  man,  but  weeks  went 
by,  and  at  no  time  had  he  been  alone  with  him. 

On  the  eve  of  Mr.  Trumbull's  departure  he  decided 
that  he  had  not  been  living  up  to  his  life-resolve  to 
speak  to  others  for  Christ,  made  very  early  in  his 
Christian  experience.  It  was  not  an  easy  journey 
across  the  hallway,  nor  did  his  knock  on  the  opposite 
closed  door  sound  with  any  great  assurance.  But  he 
was  cordially  received,  and  when  he  told  of  his  pur- 
pose to  leave  the  next  day,  he  was  pleasantly  sur- 
prised to  hear  expressions  of  sincere  regret. 

That  was  an  opening.  Mr.  Trumbull  said  that  his 
joy  in  Christ's  service  was  his  greatest  possession, 
and  he  had  come  to  say  that  he  had  longed  to  have 
his  fellow-boarders  know  that  joy  with  him.  The 
young  man  promptly  replied  that  he  would  like  to 
know  more  about  Mr.  Trumbull's  religious  belief,  and 
asked  what  books  would  enlighten  him. 

Mr.  Trumbull  did  leave  the  next  day,  but  with  him 
went  the  young  man  and  his  wife,  changing  their 
itinerary  in  order  to  be  under  his  instruction.  In 
their  subsequent  talks  Mr.  Trumbull  held  the  conver- 
sation and  their  common  thought  to  Christ  himself, 
and  would  not  let  his  new  companion's  mind  dwell  at 
all  upon  his  old  habits  or  prejudices.  It  was  very 
soon  clear  to  the  seeking  soul  that  the  question  of 
practises  would  fall  into  line  with  little  difficulty, 
when  once  the  whole  being  had  been  yielded  to  the 


270  He7iry  Clay  Trumbull 


Master.  Out  of  those  days  of  friendly  intercourse 
grew  a  life-time  friendship,  and  two  new  workers, 
the  man  and  his  wife,  were  won  for  the  kingdom, 
and  became  widely  useful  in  mission-school  service. 

In  this  single  incident  was  wrapped  up  the  secret 
of  Henry  Clay  Trumbull's  power.  Nor  was  the 
power  his,  for  before  he  had  entered  that  boarding- 
house  room,  knocking  in  his  Saviour's  name  at  more 
doors  than  the  one  that  swung  on  hinges,  he  had 
given  himself  to  prayer.  Of  course  the  case  was 
"  hopeless."  Therein  lay  the  opportunity.  Indeed, 
nothing  was  more  significant  in  Mr.  Trumbull's  spir- 
itual stability  than  his  childlike  reliance  upon  God  as 
his  willing,  watchful,  all-wise  heavenly  Father.  Com- 
munion with  that  Father  was  not  the  rarefied  ether 
of  spiritual  mountain  peaks,  attained  through  costly 
occasional  effort,  but  rather  the  normal  atmosphere 
of  his  daily  life  on  the  level  of  his  simplest  needs 
and  humblest  endeavors.  Therefore  in  crisis  times 
there  was  no  unwonted,  frenzied  struggle  toward  a 
veiled  and  awful  Power,  vaguely  benignant  and  re- 
motely condescending,  but  rather  the  confident  turn- 
ing of  a  trusting  child  to  the  Father  who  had  shown 
his  unchanging  love  in  little  things  and  great,  to  the 
God  of  whom  he  indeed  could  say  with  Tennyson : 

Closer  is  He  than  breathing, 
And  nearer  than  hands  and  feet." 

One  evening,  when  Mr.  Trumbull  was  to  leave 
Hartford  for  Boston  on  a  midnight  train,  he  was 
folding  a  manuscript  to  be  mailed  without  fail  that 
night  to  the  National  Teacher  in  Chicago,  when  he 


Living  the  Life  of  Prayer  271 


was  startled  by  a  cry  of  pain  from  his  wife  in  the 
room  above  him.  He  ran  to  her  assistance,  and 
found  she  had  burned  herself  slightly  with  a  lamp. 
When  he  returned  to  the  library  the  manuscript  was 
missing.  He  searched  the  table  and  floor,  the  stairs, 
the  rooms  above,  and  his  eight  or  ten  pockets,  with 
no  success.  But  the  midnight  train  would  not  wait, 
nor  would  the  magazine  presses.  He  must  find  the 
manuscript.  So  he  knelt  at  his  study  table  and 
prayed  for  help,  and  while  he  knelt,  came  the  clear 
mental  impression  : 

"  Stand  up,  and  throw  off  your  coat  and  vest." 

So  doing,  he  found  the  manuscript  in  an  inner  vest 
pocket,  which  he  had  not  known  was  there.  Before 
he  hurried  away  for  the  train,  mailing  the  manuscript 
as  he  went,  he  knelt  again,  and  this  time  to  thank 
God  for  his  goodness.  For  although,"  as  he  wrote 
in  describing  the  incident  years  later,  "  this  was  all 
within  the  realm  of  the  natural,  I  was  none  the  less 
helpless  to  find  the  missing  paper  within  the  time 
allowed  me  ;  and  I  needed  God's  supernatural  over- 
sight of  the  natural  in  order  to  enable  me  to  do  my 
duty  for  him  in  my  little  sphere.  And  he  came  to 
my  relief  with  his  guiding  voice,  as  he  is  ever  ready 
to  do  for  his  children,  according  to  their  need  and 
faith." 

Mr.  Trumbull  became  so  accustomed  to  count  upon 
God's  answers  to  prayer  that  his  life  was  filled  with 
incidents  which  he  was  ever  recalling  as  showing 
forth  the  Father's  personal  interest  in  each  of  his 
children.  Many  devoted  Christian  workers,  to  whom 
prayer  was  even  a  frequent  resource,  were  not  quite 


272  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


able  to  free  themselves  of  a  certain  sense  of  astonish- 
ment at  Mr.  Trumbull's  every-day  reliance  upon  his 
heavenly  Father's  promises.  That  he  could  pray 
about  a  lost  manuscript,  really  expecting  and  really 
getting  help,  was  almost  petty  in  the  opinion  of  some 
whose  large  views  of  the  Deity  took  minor  account 
of  the  individual  and  his  little  perplexities.  But  Mr. 
Trumbull  had  no  patience  with  any  theory  of  divinity 
that  thrust  the  individual  away  from  God,  and  massed 
him  or  classed  him  as  an  atom  of  the  whole.  To  his 
mind,  God  and  the  individual  normally  sustained 
a  perfect  personal  relationship  which  ought  to  be 
claimed  and  entered  into  without  reserve  by  the 
man,  and  which  would  be  maintained  in  absolute 
integrity  by  God  himself,  given  a  submissive  will 
and  whole-souled  devotion  on  the  man's  part.  So  he 
believed  and  so  he  lived. 

One  night  he  was  in  Brooklyn,  whither  he  had 
gone  on  behalf  of  a  New  England  mother  whose 
wayward  son  was  in  trouble  in  that  city.  Mrs. 
Trumbull  alone  knew  her  husband's  plan  and  pur- 
pose on  that  errand  of  mercy,  and  because  it  would 
take  him  into  a  dangerous  quarter  of  the  city,  to 
allay  her  fears  for  his  safety,  he  took  with  him  a 
pistol, — his  last  mistake  of  that  sort.  In  trying  to 
board  a  crowded  street-car  in  Brooklyn,  his  pistol  fell 
from  his  pocket,  struck  on  the  hammer,  and  from  the 
shot  that  followed,  the  car-conductor  received  a  flesh 
wound.  With  the  rapidly  gathering  crowd  came  a 
policeman,  into  whose  charge  Mr.  Trumbull  at  once 
put  himself,  giving  as  he  did  so  an  explanation  of  the 
accident.    At  the  police  station  his  case  was  fully 


Living  the  Life  of  Prayer  273 


considered,  and  he  was  promptly  exonerated.  He 
saw  the  conductor,  and  offered  to  meet  any  expense 
which  he  might  incur  as  a  result  of  the  accident. 
Then  Mr.  Trumbull  inquired  whether  it  was  neces- 
sary that  his  name  should  be  made  public  in  connec- 
tion with  any  report  of  the  affair.  To  his  great 
distress  he  was  told  that  the  police  office  had  no 
power  to  suppress  his  name,  and  as  he  returned  to 
his  home,  he  began  to  realize  that  a  newspaper 
report  of  the  affair  might  throw  suspicion  on  him 
without  giving  him  an  opportunity  to  clear  himself. 

When  he  reached  home,  he  laid  the  whole  matter 
before  the  Lord,  with  the  realization  that  any  blot 
upon  his  good  name  would  put  him  under  obligation 
to  retire  from  the  Lord's  public  service. 

In  at  least  three  of  the  New  York  papers  the  next 
day  a  full  report  of  the  Brooklyn  incident  appeared, 
but  in  each  report  a  name  bearing  no  resemblance  to 
Henry  Clay  Trumbull's  was  given.  As  I  read  these 
reports,"  said  Mr.  Trumbull,  "I  dropped  on  my  knees 
before  God,  and  thanked  him  that  he  had  thus  indi- 
cated his  wish  that  I  should  still  continue  in  his  work 
under  his  guard  and  guidance." 

Relying  thus  upon  God  for  specific  direction  and  pro- 
tection and  strength,  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  lived  out 
the  conviction  that  Bushnell  had  crystallized  in  his 
sermon,  "  Every  Man's  Life  a  Plan  of  God."  That 
was  a  favorite  theme  of  Mr.  Trumbull's  in  thought 
and  word,  and  the  great  fact  therein  embodied  was 
the  life-chart  from  which  he  got  his  bearings. 

Through  this  habit  of  taking  God  at  his  word,  this 
trustful  servant,  pliant  to  every  touch  of  the  divine 


2  74  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


hand,  sensitive  to  the  divine  voice,  however  speaking, 
vi^as  led  along  an  ascending  path  into  one  field  of  use- 
fulness after  another.  This  was  so  evident  to  men 
who  knew  him  best  that  some  would  wonderingly 
inquire  how  it  was  that  he  could  so  unerringly  dis- 
cern the  open  door.  And  then  Trumbull,  lest  he 
should  seem  to  assume  a  peculiar  power  which  he 
earnestly  disclaimed,  and  in  the  interests  of  simple 
truth  would  answer  in  his  native  Yankee  fashion : 

"  Open  door  ?  Oh,  yes ;  I  have  gone  through 
many  an  open  door,  but  generally  it  has  been  with 
the  hand  of  the  Lord  on  the  nape  of  my  neck,  and  a 
strong  lift  from  behind  !  " 

He  would  not  pose  as  exceptionally  favored  of 
God,  and  if  his  way  of  dispelling  the  illusion  was 
homely  it  was  at  least  effective.  But  there  was  a 
serious  meaning  in  what  he  said,  for  while  he  sought 
God's  will  with  constancy,  he  had  no  exemption 
from  the  testings  of  cross-road  vistas,  when  a  man 
comes  for  the  moment  to  a  standstill. 

He  was,  indeed,  not  far  from  such  a  time  as  the 
seventies  opened,  w^hen  he  was  led  to  the  securing  of 
a  helper  in  his  New  England  work  who  was  to  have 
no  small  part  in  helping  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  follow 
to  conspicuous  success  a  pathway  new  to  both,  and 
rich  in  service  to  each. 

In  May,  1870,  when  Mr.  Trumbull  had  been  with- 
out an  office  assistant  for  the  first  time  in  several 
years,  he  was  a  visitor  in  the  Second  Congregational 
Sunday-school  in  Norwich,  Connecticut.  He  had 
been  prayerfully  on  the  lookout  for  the  sorely-needed 
assistant,  but  he  had  no  reason  to  think  that  he  might 


Living  the  Life  of  Prayer  275 

find  him  there.  Indeed,  he  was  not  giving  any 
thought  to  the  subject  as  he  Hstened  to  the  opening 
service.  But  as  he  was  about  to  bow  his  head  in 
prayer  he  caught  a  ghmpse  of  a  young  man  passing 
at  his  right.  He  did  not  see  his  full  face,  but  at 
once  it  was  borne  in  upon  him  that  he  had  seen  the 
helper  he  was  seeking.  And  he  had.  After  the  ser- 
vice he  found  upon  inquiry  that  the  young  man's 
name  was  John  D.  Wattles  ;  that  he  was  the  assistant 
in  a  Norwich  drug  store,  where  he  was  learning  the 
business.  Mr.  Trumbull  interviewed  him  later,  and 
presented  the  question  to  him,  leaving  him  free  to 
act  as  God  might  lead  him.  It  was  four  weeks  after 
the  first  interview  that  John  Wattles  decided  to  un- 
dertake the  proffered  work. 

Before  six  months  had  passed,"  wrote  Dr.  Trum- 
bull, "  Mr.  Wattles  said  he  would  never  go  back  to 
his  former  position  even  at  ten  thousand  dollars  a 
year.  He  felt  that  God  was  leading  him  to  better 
service.  He  soon  had  his  younger  brother  in  another 
branch  of  the  work  which  now  had  his  heart,  and  he 
himself  was  pressing  onward  and  upward.  He  be- 
came the  general  secretary  of  the  Connecticut  Sun- 
day-school Association,  and  he  developed  special 
power  in  organizing  and  directing  movements  for 
the  improvement  of  the  Sunday-schools  of  the  state. 
He  showed  himself  also  an  effective  speaker  in  con- 
ventions and  institutes  throughout  New  England. 
Moreover,  he  was  showing  power  and  gaining  in- 
fluence and  winning  friends  more  and  more  widely 
all  the  time. 

"And  in  this  wa\'  my  life  came   to   be  linked 


276  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


with  the  God-led  life  of  John  D.  Wattles,  who  was 
later  my  loved  friend,  my  dear  son-in-law,  my  busi- 
ness partner,  and  a  helper,  an  example,  and  an  in- 
spiration to  me,  while  proving  himself  a  helper  and 
an  inspiration  to  many  thousands  of  those  who  never 
saw  his  face  or  heard  his  voice,  and  an  example  to 
every  one  who  ever  knew  him  as  he  was." 


GUIDED  TO  THE  EDITORIAL  CHAIR 


Work  at  the  command  of  Jesus  is  successful 
work,  whatever  the  result  may  be. 

There  are  never  two  duties  which  are  both 
supreme  for  the  moment  to  any  individual. — 
From  editorial  paragraphs. 

A  man  of  God,  or  a  child  of  God,  ought  to 
know  that  he  is  in  a  universe  controlled  by  his 
God,  and  that  it  is  his  duty  and  his  privilege  to 
be  wholly  the  Lord' s,  and  to  do  fully  and  effec- 
tively all  the  work  that  the  Lord  has  for  him  to 
do.  Knowing  this,  he  must  know  also  that  his 
real  power  lies  in  his  dependence  on  his  God 
instead  of  on  himself.  This  sense  of  depend- 
ence, so  far  from  lessening  a  man's  personal 
independence  of  thought  and  action,  is  the  very 
basis  of  the  highest  independence  possible  to  a 
man,  —  the  independence  of  every  one  and  of 
every  thing  save  Him  who  is  over  all  and  in 
all.  In  fact,  no  man  can  be  so  independent  of 
all  else  as  he  who  is  consciously  and  trustfully 
dependent  wholly  on  God. — Duty- Knowing  and 
Duty- Doing. 


CHAPTER  XVII 


GUIDED  TO  THE  EDITORIAL  CHAIR 

His  wide  knowledge  of  the  Sunday-school  and  its 
needs,  his  unremitting  labors  in  the  New  England 
field,  and  his  vigorous  articles  for  the  religious  and 
secular  press,  brought  Henry  Clay  Trumbull's  peculiar 
gifts  into  lively  requisition.  He  was  bold  in  utter- 
ance to  the  verge  of  rashness,  taking  extreme  posi- 
tions on  every  subject  that  he  treated. 

"Oil  has  its  uses,"  he  said  to  a  Hartford  neighbor. 
"  Some  people  use  one  kind,  some  another,  in  getting 
on  with  other  folks."  And  then  half-ruefully,  and  yet 
with  his  hearty  laugh,     /  generally  use  oil  of  vitriol  ! " 

In  upsetting  false  notions,  in  effecting  reforms  where 
prejudice  and  conventional  error  were  in  control,  he 
knew  that  the  bite  of  an  irritant  would  often  do  more 
real  good  than  the  soothing  flow  of  an  emollient.  He 
knew  the  necessity  of  one-sidedness  in  urging  a  reform, 
or  in  putting  a  truth  that  might  not  be  readily  accepted. 
In  the  course  of  his  historical  studies  of  the  Sunda}'- 
school,  carried  out  in  great  detail  through  careful  col- 
lections of  pamphlets,  fugitive  articles,  and  of  old 
books  and  new,  he  had  gained  convictions  about  the 
place  and  work  of  that  institution  which  the  superfi- 
cial student  could  not  attain.  His  observations  had 
confirmed  these  studies  so  strongly  that  he  became 

279 


28o  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


boldly  confident  of  certain  great  principles  and  facts 
underlying  the  whole  structure  of  religious  education. 
If  he  wrote  of  preaching  to  children,  an  art  and  a 
duty  sorely  abused  by  its  ignoring,  he  could  not  be 
calmly  argumentative.  In  The  Advance,  in  1869,  he 
wrote  : 

**Any  other  preaching,  for  purposes  of  evangeliza- 
tion, than  to  children,  should  be  exceptional  in  a 
nominally  Christian  community.  Yes,  that  is  the 
truth  about  it.  Godless  adults  are  the  fag-end  of 
humanity.  .  .  .  But  shall  irreligious  adults  be  utterly 
neglected  as  a  hopelessly  lost  class?  By  no  means. 
'While  there  is  life  there  is  hope.'  Grown-up  sinners 
may  be  saved.  Offers  of  grace  should  be  extended  to 
them,  even  though  they  may  be  already  sentenced  to 
the  gallows,  shut  in  states  prison,  clustered  in  inebriate 
or  insane  asylums,  huddled  in  dens  of  vice  in  city  pur- 
lieus, or  cushioned  in  easy  seats  as  godless  pewholders 
in  fashionable  churches.  Certainly.  Words  of  warn- 
ing should  be  dropped  to  all  these  forlorn  classes,  while 
the  hopeful  work  of  evangelizing  the  young  and  of 
training  church  members  goes  on  apace.  .  .  .  But,  oh ! 
never,  never  should  the  children  be  overlooked  for  the 
best  of  tTiese  venerable  reprobates.  .  .  .  The  man  who 
cannot  preach  to  children  is  not  half  a  minister,  what- 
ever titles  may  stand  at  either  end  of  his  name.  He 
may  ...  do  well  as  a  lecturer  on  any  theme  but  homi- 
letics  in  a  theological  seminary,  but,  oh  !  he  is  never 
fit  for  a  pastor.  He  ought  not  to  palm  himself  off  on 
to  any  parish  as  such.  .  ,  .  Good  Dr.  Tyng  said  years 
ago  of  the  minister  who  devoted  himself  to  adults 
exclusively  :  *  I  should  like  to  know  how  Satan  would 


Guided  to  the  Editorial  Chair  281 


want  that  minister  to  be  more  completely  mounted  and 
equipped  by  his  side,  Satan  saying  to  the  preacher, 
"  Now  you  just  stand  there  and  fire  at  the  grown 
people,  and  I  will  stand  here  and  steal  away  the  little 
children, — as  the  Indians  catch  ducks,  swimming  under 
them,  catching  them  by  the  legs,  and  pulling  them 
down."  '  " 

Or,  again  in  1870,  when  striking  at  the  too  preva- 
lent idea  that  family  religious  instruction  had  been 
abolished  by  the  advent  of  the  Sunday-school,  he 
wrote  in  The  Advance  under  the  title  of  Ancestral 
Worship"  : 

"  On  no  point  is  there  clearer  argreement  among 
the  yellow-skinned  Yankees  than  as  to  the  reverence 
due  their  ancestors  for  the  godly  household  training 
of  little  ones  before  the  degenerate  days  of  Sunday- 
schools.  For  the  return  of  no  departed  souls  are 
more  earnest  and  frequent  calls  uttered  by  ministers 
and  editors  alike  than  for  those  of  the  mythical  Puri- 
tan patriarchs,  from  whose  lips  dropped  wisdom  and 
love  for  the  dear  children  of  their  charge  in  ever>' 
American  household,  until  the  child-destroying  Sun- 
day-school arose  and  hurried  the  good  parents  into 
Hades,  leaving  their  illustrious  record  on  the  ances- 
tral tablet,  and  their  reprobate  descendants  to  stalk 
abroad  untaught  and  unpunished.  .  .  .  Surely  the 
Taoistic  tendencies  of  Occidental  Christians  are 
alarming.  At  this  rate  Yankee  pagodas  will  multiply, 
porcelain  images  of  'Josh'  will  find  niches  in  Protest- 
ant meeting-houses,  .  .  .  and  religious  newsapapers, 
east  and  west,  will  be  printed  on  second-hand  tea- 
paper." 


282  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


Among  the  curious  perv^ersions  of  church  and  Sun- 
day-school management  then,  as  now,  was  the  refusal 
of  many  a  church  to  support  from  the  church  funds 
its  educational  and  most  fruitful  evangelistic  work, 
while  expending  liberal  sums  in  other  directions.  To 
put  this  short-sighted  practise  in  its  true  light  was  one 
of  Mr.  Trumbull's  chosen  taisks. 

There  are  churches,"  he  wTote  in  the  Congrega- 
tionalist,  "which  estimate  and  pay  annually  so  much 
for  the  pastor,  so  much  for  the  organist,  the  chorister, 
or  the  quartet ;  so  much  for  the  bell-ringer  or  sexton  ; 
so  much  for  hard  and  soft  coal,  and  kindling ;  so 
much  for  gas  or  kerosene  ;  and  so  much  for  the  little 
boy  who  blows  the  big  bellows  of  the  great  organ  ; 
yet  which  never  count  a  dollar  for  the  use  of  the  Sab- 
bath-school with  its  fifty  or  its  five  hundred  scholars, 
its  five  or  its  seventy-five  laborious  and  faithful  teach- 
ers, and  its  hard-worked,  sore-taxed,  and  self-denying 
superintendent.  The  bellows  boy  is  the  only  little 
one  really  provided  for  in  many  a  church  home.  .  .  .' 
What  claim  has  a  church  to  control  a  Sabbath-school, 
for  the  daily  bread  of  which  it  makes  no  provision?" 

Thus  Mr.  Trumbull,  on  these  questions,  and  on  the 
pertinacious  host  of  the  same  tribe,  wrote  and  talked 
in  season  and  out  of  season.  Sane  convictions  make 
good  wedges.  Mr.  Trumbull's  were  not  always  pleas- 
ant to  his  readers  or  hearers,  nor  were  they  driven  in 
order  to  increase  the  natural  cohesiveness  and  inertia 
of  the  rock  he  w^ould  rend.  Yet,  with  all  his  power 
of  attack,  and  his  ruthless  upsetting  of  old  landmarks 
in  the  hope  of  erecting  better  guides,  his  social  charm, 
his  candid,  guileless  directness  in  his  dealings  with  all, 


Guided  to  the  Editorial  Chair 


283 


kept  his  record  exceptionally  free  from  the  enmities 
and  rankling  resentment  that  so  often  blight  the 
career  of  a  positive,  aggressive  man.  Every  one  of 
any  wit  could  see  that  a  man  who  could  never  go  up 
or  down  stairs  one  step  at  a  time,  who  could  never 
walk  fast  enough  to  answer  the  impulse  from  within, 
whose  eyes  would  fill  with  tears  over  any  one's  story 
of  wrong  or  suffering,  and  who,  at  any  cost,  would 
spend  himself  for  a  friend,  must  of  necessity  be 
intense  and  fervid,  even  while  tender  and  sensitively 
considerate  in  personal  intercourse.  Hence  it  was 
that  Mr.  Trumbull  in  his  true  spirit  was  seldom  more 
than  momentarily  misunderstood,  and  there  were  few 
who  had  any  mind  to  resist  the  charm  and  magnetism 
of  his  glowing,  affectionate  personality. 

He  was  a  welcome  guest  everywhere.  In  Boston 
and  at  Wellesley,  for  example,  the  home  of  Henry  F. 
Durant  was  always  open  to  him.  Mr.  Durant  was  a 
leader  among  the  intellectual  giants  of  the  New  Eng- 
land bar.  Rufus  Choate,  with  whom  he  was  often 
associated  in  important  cases,  used  to  speak  of  him  as 
the  "silver-tongued  Durant."  Upon  the  death  of 
his  only  son  in  1863,  Mr.  Durant  gave  up  his  great 
law  practise,  and  henceforth  devoted  his  whole  time 
and  means  to  Christian  service,  as  an  evangelist, 
teacher,  and  patron  of  higher  education.  One  of  the 
men  whom  he  led  to  Christ  was  Henry  Wilson,  then 
United  States  Senator,  and  afterwards  Vice-President 
Mr.  Durant  was  the  founder  of  Wellesley  College,  and 
to  it  he  and  his  wife  gave  unsparingly  in  money  and 
time.  Concerning  this  work  he  unselfishly  declared, 
"I  won't  have  any  bust,  or  picture,  or  statue  of  mc  at 


284  Henry  Clay  Trmnbidl 


Wellesley  College  ;  it  is  a  matter  of  principle.  The 
college  belongs  to  God,  not  to  me." 

Trumbull  first  met  Mr.  Durant  in  the  Sunday- 
school  of  the  Union  Church  in  Boston,  where  the  mis- 
sionary secretary  had  been  speaking.  The  two  men 
were  at  once  drawn  to  each  other.  They  were  often 
together  after  that  in  conventions  and  in  the  home  of 
one  or  the  other. 

"I  think,"  said  Mr.  Trumbull,  "that  in  all  the 
years  of  our  intimacy  I  never  talked  with  him  for  ten 
consecutive  minutes  in  public  or  in  private,  on  week-day 
or  on  Sunday,  in  doors  or  out,  without  his  bringing  the 
subject  of  Christ  and  His  cause  into  prominence.  He 
used  to  say  to  me,  "I've  lost  so  much  time  for  Christ, 
before  beginning  actively  to  serve  Him,  that  I  don't 
want  now  to  lose  another  minute." 

To  many  who  saw  and  heard  him,  Mr.  Durant 
seemed  in  countenance  and  spirit  to  satisfy  one's  ideal 
of  the  Apostle  John.  His  beautiful  face  glowed  with 
an  inner  light.  His  hair  was  wa\y,  and  of  snowy 
whiteness.  When  he  spoke  it  was  in  musical  cadences, 
with  what  President  Rankin  of  Howard  University 
called  his  burning  seraphic  speech,"  and  with  what 
Joseph  Cook  characterized  as  a  "  a  lawyer's  overmas- 
tering logic,  with  a  new  convert's  spiritual  fervor." 

On  the  evening  of  Mr.  Durant's  first  day  in  Trum- 
bull's home,  the  eldest  daughter  in  that  household 
said  to  her  father : 

"  I  think  the  name  of  Jesus  never  sounded  quite  so 
sweet  to  me,  as  when  Mr.  Durant  speaks  it.  He 
seems  to  love  it  so,  and  he  seems  to  cling  to  it  as  if  he 
didn't  want  to  let  it  go."    And  then,  a  few  days  later 


Guided  to  the  Editorial  Chair  285 


she  added,  "  I  think  that  the  name  of  Jesus  sounds 
sweeter  to  me  now  when  anybody  speaks  it,  since  I 
first  heard  Mr.  Durant  say  it"  No  wonder  that 
Trumbull's  voice  always  took  on  a  peculiar  tenderness 
whenever  he  spoke  of  this  man  of  God,  who  in  these 
busy  years  in  the  New  England  field  was  to  him  so 
noble  an  example  of  consecrated  intellect  and  spiritual 
fervor. 

Trumbull  himself  was  like  Mr.  Durant  in  the  radi- 
ancy of  his  personality.  He  was  so  genuine,  so  frank, 
so  hearty,  that  he  disarmed  the  unapproachable  and 
won  instantly  the  confidence  of  all.  Men  talked  to 
him  freely.  His  quick  sympathy  drew  out  the  best 
that  there  was  in  others.  In  this  way  hidden  phases 
of  character  were  disclosed  to  him.  No  better  instance 
of  this  could  be  given  than  in  his  conversations  with 
General  Grant,  who  was  by  no  means  given  to  effu- 
siveness. 

His  first  meeting  with  Grant  was  in  the  General's 
home  in  Washington,  just  after  General  Joseph  R. 
Hawley,  as  chairman  of  the  Chicago  Convention,  had 
notified  Grant  of  his  nomination  to  the  Presidency. 
Hawley  had  invited  Trumbull  to  accompany  him,  but 
the  latter,  on  his  way  home  from  a  Southern  trip,  did 
not  reach  Washington  in  season  for  this.  He  called 
on  Grant,  however,  and  after  a  few  moments  the 
General  entered  the  room,  greeting  him  cordially,  and 
saying  : 

"  Excuse  me  for  keeping  you  waiting,  but  I  was  out 
in  the  yard  playing  circus  with  my  chikh'cn." 

The  simplicity  and  naturalness  of  tlie  General  im- 
pressed him  anew.    The  newspapers  were  at  that  time 


286  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


speaking  of  the  reticence  of  "the  silent  man  ;  "  yet  he 
talked  freely  with  his  visitor  about  the  political  situa- 
tion, inquiring  who  Trumbull  thought  would  be  nomi- 
nated by  the  Democrats  for  the  Presidency.  He 
answered  that  there  seemed  then  to  be  more  than  a 
possibility  that  they  would  nominate  Chief  Justice 
Chase. 

"  I  hope  they'll  nominate  Chase,"  said  Grant  at 
once.  "Then  we  shall  feel  easy  for  our  country  in 
either  event." 

At  another  time  Trumbull  spoke  to  Grant  of  the 
"  sense  of  personal  responsibility  which  he  must  have 
felt  for  the  great  number  of  officers  and  men  under 
his  command,"  and  wondered  how  it  was  that  the 
General  could  remember  all  those  whom  he  must  have 
in  mind  in  carrying  out  his  orders. 

"As  to  that  matter,"  said  Grant,  "I  didn't  have  to 
consider  personally  as  many  men  the  last  year  of  the 
war  as  the  first.  When  I  was  colonel  of  a  regiment, 
I  knew  eveiy  man  in  the  regiment,  and  I  had  them 
all  in  mind.  But,  as  I  rose  in  command,  I  made  it 
my  business  to  keep  up  my  knowledge  of  commanders 
under  me  sufficiently  to  be  sure  that  they  could  be 
trusted  to  attend  to  those  whom  they  commanded, 
and  not  to  concern  myself  about  others.  When  I  was 
at  the  head  of  all  the  armies,  I  didn't  especially  bur- 
den my  mind  with  any  man  below  the  rank  of  divi- 
sion commander.  Being  sure  of  these,  I  could  trust 
them  to  look  out  for  those  below  them." 

One  evening  Trumbull  was  in  Governor  Burn- 
side's  parlor  in  Providence  as  one  of  a  delegation 
from  Hartford  to  invite  Grant  to  that  city.    A  great 


Guided  to  the  Editorial  Chair 


287 


crowd  was  outside  serenading  the  President  with  a 
band,  while  he  and  Burnside  stood  by  an  open  win- 
dow. There  came  loud  calls  for  a  speech.  The 
President  stood  silently  looking  at  the  crowd  and 
bowing  his  acknowledgments. 

"You  know,  fellow  citizens,"  said  the  Governor, 
"that  the  President  doesn't  make  speeches." 

"Oh,  General  Grant,  do  say  just  two  words  to  us  !  " 
cried  a  voice  from  the  crowd. 

"/  wo7i'ty'  responded  Grant,  in  a  firm  tone,  with 
no  change  of  expression  in  his  face.  He  could  do 
what  the  man  asked,  and  yet  stick  to  his  customary 
reticence. 

"Although  he  was  not  accustomed  to  show  emo- 
tion," says  Dr.  Trumbull,  "  and  was  supposed  by 
many  to  be  regardless  of  adverse  criticism.  General 
Grant  was  sensitive  to  the  opinion  of  others,  and  felt 
deeply  the  misjudgment  of  his  spirit  and  motives  by 
those  who  ought  to  have  understood  him  better. 
Being  with  him  in  a  private  car  on  one  occasion  during 
the  second  term  of  his  administration,  I  sat  near  him 
while  no  one  else  was  by,  and  ventured  to  speak  of 
the  love  which  I  in  common  with  his  old  soldiers  gen- 
erally bore  him.  My  words  seemed  to  touch  his 
heart,  and  to  start  him  on  a  train  of  thought  about 
the  popular  judgment  of  his  course.  As  he  thanked 
me  for  my  grateful  words,  he  continued  in  a  kind  of 
personal  soliloquizing  : 

"  *  I  don't  wonder  that  people  differ  with  me,  and 
that  they  think  I  am  not  doing  the  best  that  could  be 
done.  I  can  understand  how  the)-  may  blame  me  for 
a  lack  of  knowledge  or  judgment,     l^ut  what  hurls 


288  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


me  is  to  have  them  talk  as  if  I  didn't  love  my  coun- 
try, and  wasn't  doing  the  best  I  knew  how. 

**  *  It  was  just  that  way  in  war  time.  I  didn't  do  as 
well  as  might  have  been  done.  A  great  many  times 
I  didn't  do  as  well  as  I  was  trying  to  do.  Often  I 
didn't  do  as  well  as  I  expected  to  do.  But  I  had  my 
plans  and  I  was  trying  to  carry  them  out.  They  called 
me  **Fool"  and  "Butcher"  ;  they  said  I  didn't  know 
anything,  and  hadn't  any  plans.  But  I  kept  on,  and 
they  kept  on,  and  by  and  by  Richmond  was  taken, 
and  I  was  at  Appomattox  Court  House,  and  then 
they  couldn't  find  words  enough  to  praise  me.' 

**Then  he  returned  to  present  days,  in  his  quiet 
soliloquy  : 

'  I  suppose  it  will  be  so  now.  In  spite  of  mis- 
takes and  failures  I  shall  keep  at  it.  By  and  by  we'll 
have  specie  payments  resumed,  reconstruction  will  be 
complete,  good  feeling  will  be  restored  between  the 
North  and  the  South  ;  we  shall  be  at  Appomattox 
again, — and  then  I  suppose  they'll  praise  me.' 

"That  soliloquy  of  General  Grant  gave  me  a 
glimpse  into  his  great  heart.  I  knew  better  than 
before  how  he  felt,  how  he  endured,  how  he  trusted, 
and  how  he  hoped  ;  and  I  loved  him  more  than 
ever." 

In  the  summer  of  1871  Trumbull  was  urgently 
called  to  the  editorial  chair  of  The  National  Teacher 
of  Chicago,  when  Edward  Eggleston  left  that  work  to 
go  to  New  York.  The  suggestion  appealed  to  him. 
He  saw  in  the  proffered  position  a  national  vantage- 
point  from  which  he  could  press  his  convictions  on 
Sunday-school  work.    When  he  had  gone  out  of  his 


Guided  to  the  Editorial  Chair  289 


New  England  field  on  special  occasions  he  felt  himself 
somewhat  beyond  the  bounds  of  his  legitimate  sphere, 
and  yet  his  accumulations  of  Sunday-school  experi- 
ence could  readily  be  made  of  use  to  schools  every- 
where. All  this  he  discussed  with  officers  of  the 
Union  headquarters,  and  he  found  them  individually 
so  favorable  to  an  extension  of  his  field  within  the 
scope  of  the  society  that  he  declined  the  offer  from 
The  National  Teacher,  and  expressed  to  the  mana- 
gers of  the  Union  his  willingness  to  undertake  a  more 
extended  work  for  the  improvement  of  schools. 

None  were  more  alive  to  Mr.  Trumbull's  popularity 
and  efficiency  than  these  managers.  They  were  intent 
upon  introducing  improved  methods  of  Sunday-school 
work,  and  they  saw  in  him  the  man  by  whom  that 
purpose  could  be  furthered  with  hope  of  large  suc- 
cess. In  October  of  1871  Mr.  Trumbull  was  ap- 
pointed "Normal  Secretary"  of  the  Union  to  attend 
institutes  and  conventions  in  any  part  of  the  coun- 
try, with  the  duty  of  "presenting  and  illustrating 
modes  of  organizing  and  conducting  Sunday-schools, 
and  principles  and  methods  of  teaching  ;  and  of  advo- 
cating whatever  tends  to  the  greater  efficiency  for  good 
of  the  Sunday-school  and  its  workers,  as  opportunities 
offer,  and  as  accords  with  the  designs  of  the  Societ>^" 

Besides  the  more  extended  field  work  of  the  new 
position,  Mr.  Trumbull  retained  all  of  his  New  Eng- 
land responsibilities,  and  took  charge  of  a  "Teachers' 
Department"  in  the  Sunday  School  World,  published 
by  the  Union,  writing  several  pages  for  each  issue. 

In  1 87 1,  when  I^dward  Eggleston  resigned  as  chair- 
man of  the  Executive  Committee  of  the  National  Sun- 


290  Henry  Clay  Trtimbull 


day-school  Convention,  Trumbull  was  chosen  for  that 
office.  Hence  the  call  for  the  Fifth  National  Conven- 
tion went  out  over  his  signature,  the  convention  at 
which  the  uniform  lesson  idea  was  adopted,  and  action 
was  taken  making  the  scope  of  the  convention  inter- 
national by  the  inclusion  of  Canada. 

For  more  than  three  years  he  traveled  over  the 
length  and  breadth  of  the  land,  some  twenty  thousand 
miles  a  year,  holding  institutes  and  speaking  in  con- 
ventions. And  this  was  not  the  day  of  railway  con- 
nections that  make  traveling  a  pastime.  Trumbull 
could  remember  overhearing  in  the  national  House 
of  Representatives  a  discussion  concerning  the  build- 
ing of  a  transcontinental  railroad.  At  that  time  a 
distinguished  member  of  Congress  said  to  him  : 

Trumbull,  you  and  I  may  see  strange  things  before 
we  die  ;  but  neither  of  us  will  ever  live  long  enough  to 
see  a  railroad  built  to  the  Pacific  coast.  It  is  practi- 
cally impossible." 

When  Trumbull  crossed  the  plains  on  the  railroad 
that  was  never  to  be,  he  saw  the  West  in  its  old-time 
frontier  garb, — Indians,  herds  of  buffaloes,  and  the 
occasional  bad  man " — one  with  a  bullet  freshly 
lodged  in  him  as  he  was  helped  to  the  train.  Alex- 
ander Faribault  was  still  living  in  the  little  town  he 
had  founded  in  Minnesota,  a  small  place  of  a  few 
thousand  inhabitants  when  Trumbull  visited  it. 

Persons  were  always  more  interesting  than  places  to 
Henry  Clay  Trumbull,  as  was  pointed  out  in  an  early 
chapter.  On  this  transcontinental  journey,  however, 
he  came  upon  one  masterpiece  of  nature  which  fairly 
held  him  spellbound.    It  is  evident  that  his  eye  for 


Guided  to  the  Editorial  Chair  291 


the  magnificently  impressive  was  not  untrained  or 
unappreciative. 

*'  My  first  sight  or  gHmpse  of  the  Yosemite  Valley 
was  from  Inspiration  Point,  on  my  way  into  the  valley 
from  San  Francisco  in  the  spring  of  1872.  As  we 
slowly  ascended  the  mountain  road  on  the  Mariposa 
trail,  a  dense  fog  shut  down  all  around  us,  and  I  had 
little  hope  of  any  extended  view  from  there.  As  we 
reached  the  Point  I  dismounted  and  walked  to  the 
spot  where,  if  the  day  were  clear,  we  might  have  a 
view  to  be  ever  remembered.  Lo  !  there  God 
granted  me  an  unexpected  sight  which  has  been  in 
my  mind  ever  since,  although  I  have  been  in  various 
portions  of  our  world  of  beauty. 

Suddenly,  as  I  looked  out  into  the  gloom,  the 
clouds  parted,  the  declining  sun  shone  out,  and  the 
valley  before  me  was  disclosed  at  a  glance.  There  on 
one  hand  was  El  Capitan  with  its  sheer  walls  of  granite 
standing  like  a  massive  cube  of  rock  rising  from  the 
green  sward  to  an  elevation  of  fifteen  times  as  high  as 
Bunker  Hill  monument.  Beyond  this,  at  the  right 
and  left  rose  a  dozen  or  more  other  granite  walls,  and 
lofty  domes,  and  towering  peaks,  some  of  these  as 
high  above  El  Capitan  as  five,  or  ten  or  fifteen  Bunker 
Hill  monuments  piled  above  the  first  fifteen.  The 
beautiful  cataract  of  Po-ho-no  was  pouring  its  vibrat- 
ing sheet  of  water  over  a  height  three  times  as  great 
as  Niagara,  while  other  falls  three  times  its  high  as 
Po-ho-no  were  shimmering  in  the  sunlight. 

"There  in  the  compass  of  a  view  three  miles  by 
fifteen  were  clustered  such  bewildering  sights  of  gran- 
deur and  beauty  as  overwhelmed  me  with  their  sense 


292  Henry  Clay  Triimbull 


of  vastness  and  majesty,  and  put  at  fault  in  an  instant 
every  standard  of  mountain  measurement  and  every 
ideal  of  natural  scenery  I  had  ever  before  conceived. 
It  was  but  for  a  moment.  The  clouds  returned. 
The  veil  was  lowered.  All  at  once  again  was  mist 
and  gloom.  But  Inspiration  Point  had  done  its  work 
for  me.  I  had  gained  from  it  a  new  and  higher  stan- 
dard, which  I  retained  thenceforward  for  my  life- 
time." 

The  continent-wide  field  work,  much  as  he  really 
enjoyed  it,  with  its  constant  travel  and  public  speak- 
ing, taxed  Mr.  Trumbull's  strength  severely.  Could 
he  survive  the  strain  as  he  grew  older  ?  he  was  forced 
to  cisk  himself  Would  it  be  wiser  for  him  to  seek 
the  less  nerve-racking  work  of  editor  and  writer? 

As  he  was  about  to  leave  home  in  the  spring  of  1875 
for  a  Sunday-school  institute  in  Toronto,  he  learned 
that  Mr.  John  Wanamaker  had  become  the  owner  of 
The  Sunday  School  Times,  and  was  seeking  an  editor. 
Mr.  Trumbull  thought  that  Mr.  Wanamaker  might 
perhaps  consider  him  as  an  available  candidate,  but 
he  put  away  from  him  any  thought  of  suggesting  any- 
thing of  the  sort  to  the  Philadelphia  merchant,  and 
prayerfully  left  the  whole  matter  to  the  Lord. 

When  Trumbull  returned  from  Toronto,  he  found 
a  letter  from  Mr.  Wanamaker,  asking  if  he  would 
consider  becoming  the  editor  of  The  Sunday  School 
Times.  There  were  repeated  conferences  between 
the  two  after  that.  Mr.  Wanamaker  was  just  leaving 
for  Europe,  and  wanted  Trumbull  at  once.  He,  on 
the  other  hand,  as  chairman  of  the  Executive  Com- 
mittee, could  not  abandon  the  preparations  for  the 


Guided  to  the  Editorial  Chair 


293 


First  International  Convention  to  be  held  in  Balti- 
more. Yet  one  by  one  such  questions  were  dis- 
posed of. 

Then,  as  Trumbull  was  leaving  Philadelphia  one 
morning,  Mr.  Wanamaker  asked  him  : 

''What  now  stands  in  the  way  of  your  decision?" 

"  I  must  see  t\vo  other  persons, — one  of  them  in 
New  York,  the  other  in  Boston." 

"Why  not  go  at  once  and  see  them?  " 

''  Because  I  have  an  important  committee  meeting 
in  Hartford  the  day  after  to-morrow,  and  I  must  be 
at  that  meeting." 

Well,"  said  Mr.  Wanamaker,  then  we  must  wait, 
and  hope  for  things  to  work  out." 

Things  did.  After  Trumbull  had  boarded  the  Hart- 
ford train  in  New  York,  he  saw  in  the  seat  next  to 
him  the  New  York  man  who  represented  a  national 
religious  society  that  had  asked  Trumbull  to  take 
charge  of  a  department  of  its  work.  It  was  the  man 
in  the  next  seat  who  could  tell  him  all  about  the  de- 
tails of  that  field  of  sen^ice,  which  he  had  promised  to 
consider.  Trumbull  soon  saw  that  his  duty  did  not 
lie  in  the  direction  of  that  call. 

''When  I  rose  the  next  morning,"  he  wrote,  "  I 
prayed  earnestly  over  my  important  duties  of  the  da\' 
in  Hartford,  and  asked  that  the  Lord  would  give  me 
further  light  as  to  The  Sunday  School  Times  matter. 
My  next  desire  as  to  this  was  to  see  my  Boston  friend, 
Mr.  Thomas  C.  Evans.  Yet  there  were  tvvo  points 
in  connection  with  my  committee  meeting,  and 
another  interest  for  the  day,  that  burdened  my  mind 
as  I  pra\-cd.     It  seemed  as  though  the  Lord  coun- 


294  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


seled  me,  'Go  down  town,  and  do  the  best  you  can 
there,  and  leave  the  rest  to  me.' 

**A11  went  well  at  the  committee  meeting.  The 
points  of  difference  which  I  feared  would  cause 
trouble  were  settled  satisfactorily  to  all,  and  soon  after 
noon  I  returned  to  my  house  grateful  for  the  day's 
results  so  far." 

When  he  came  home  from  the  committee  meet- 
ing on  that  memorable  day,  he  saw  in  his  parlor 
his  friend  Evans,  who  had  never  been  in  his  home 
before. 

''Torn  Evans,"  he  cried,  "what  brought  you  here 
to-day, — or,  rather,  what  do  you  think  brought  you  ? 
I  know,  but  I  would  like  to  know  what  you  thinks 

Then  Mr.  Evans,  an  army  comrade,  and  one  who 
understood  the  business  side  of  newspapers,  told  how 
he  had  been  led  to  come. 

''Last  night,"  he  said,  "I  was  at  my  brother's  home 
in  Shelburne  Falls,  above  Greenfield,  Massachusetts. 
This  morning  I  started  for  my  home  by  the  way  of 
Springfield.  Just  as  I  was  starting  [that  was  about 
the  time  Mr.  Trumbull  was  praying  over  the  case]  a 
strong  impression  was  borne  in  upon  my  mind,  *  Go 
down  to  Hartford  and  see  Clay  Trumbull.  I  said  to 
myself,  'I've  nothing  to  see  him  for,  and  it  will  take 
me  out  of  my  way  and  delay  my  return  home.' 
Again  the  impression  came,  '  Go  down  to  Hartford 
and  see  Clay  Trumbull'   So  I  came,  and  here  I  am." 

"That  is  right;  and  now  I'll  tell  you  what  you 
came  for,"  said  Trumbull. 

The  conversation  with  Mr.  Evans  removed  the  last 
barrier.     Mr.  Trumbull  became  sole  editor  and  part 


Guided  to  the  Editorial  Chair  295 


owner  of  The  Sunday  School  Times,  with  John  D. 
Wattles  as  its  business  manager. 

It  was  by  no  means  easy  for  Trumbull  to  leave 
Hartford.  He  had  lived  there  for  nearly  a  quarter 
of  a  centur)^  There  he  had  been  led  to  Christ  ; 
there  he  had  been  married,  and  his  home  had  been 
blessed  with  seven  children.  Two  of  these,  Fanny, 
and  Henry  Camp,  had  died  in  babyhood.  The 
others,  Sophia  Gallaudet,  Mary  Prime,  Alice  Gal- 
laudet,  Annie  Slosson,  and  Charles  Gallaudet  knew 
no  other  home  than  Hartford.  The  youngest  child, 
Katharine  Gallaudet,  was  born  in  the  new  home  to 
which  the  Trumbulls  went. 

Hartford  is  distinctively  a  city  of  true  New  Eng- 
land culture  and  ideals.  In  the  Asylum  Hill  Congre- 
gational Church  alone,  a  church  organized  after  the 
war,  and  of  which  the  Trumbulls  became  members, 
there  was  a  remarkable  number  of  persons  conspicu- 
ous for  their  achievements  in  one  field  or  another. 
Among  those  were  General  and  Governor — after- 
wards United  States  Senator — Joseph  R.  Hawley ; 
Governor  Marshall  Jewell,  United  States  Minister  to 
Russia,  and  Postmaster-General  in  President  Grant's 
Cabinet ;  United  States  Senator  Francis  Gillette, 
and  his  son  William  Gillette,  the  playwright  and 
actor  ;  Samuel  L.  Clemens  ("  Mark  Twain  ")  ;  Charles 
Dudley  Warner  ;  Dr.  James  Hammond  Trumbull,  his 
daughter  Annie  Eliot  Trumbull,  the  author  ;  his  sister 
Annie  Trumbull  Slosson,  the  author  ;  his  brother  Gur- 
don  Trumbull,  the  artist  and  author ;  Rose  Terry 
Cooke,  the  author  ;  Professor  Calvin  E.  Stowe,  the 
Bible  scholar,  husband  of  Harriet  l^eechcr  Stowe; 


296  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


Judge  Elisha  Carpenter,  of  the  Supreme  Court  of 
Connecticut  ;  and  the  pastor  of  the  church,  the  only 
one  it  has  had,  Chaplain  Joseph  H.  Twichell,  known 
and  loved  everywhere  as  "Joe  Twichell." 

It  meant  something  for  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Trumbull  to 
leave  such  companionship  and  associations,  but  they 
confidently  did  so,  trusting  God  for  the  outcome. 

When  the  move  to  Philadelphia  was  made  in  July, 
1875,  Mr.  Trumbull  said  to  his  wife  : 

Alice,  if  future  events  should  seem  to  show  that  I 
have  wrecked  my  business  prospects,  and  even  my 
reputation,  by  going  to  Philadelphia,  I  want  you  to 
know  that  I  was  sure,  when  I  left  Hartford,  that  God 
wanted  me  to  go  there.  Whether  I  personally  am  to 
gain  or  lose  by  the  move,  God  knows.  That  God 
clearly  indicated  his  wish  for  me  to  make  the  move, 
/know.    The  result  I  am  glad  to  leave  with  God." 


DARING  THE  IMPOSSIBLE 


With  things  as  they  are,  whatever  it  is  a  man' s 
duty  to  do  he  can  have  power  to  do.  God  never 
gives  responsibility  without  being  ready  to  be- 
stow strength  and  grace  for  its  discharge. 

There  are  a  great  many  Christians  who  would 
gladly  give  God  a  handful  of  meal  after  he  had 
filled  the  barrel  who  would  hesitate  to  give  him 
the  last  handful  on  his  promise  to  fill  the  barrel 
when  empty. — From  editorial  paragraphs. 

No  single  element  of  personal  power  is  greater 
and  more  potent  than  singleness  of  power,  or  than 
the  power  of  singleness.  No  man  can  be  so 
much  of  a  man,  in  any  one  direction,  as  when 
he  is  a  whole  man  in  that  direction.  He  who 
can  concentrate  his  whole  being,  all  his  energies 
and  all  his  capabilities,  for  the  compassing  of 
the  one  thing  on  which  his  mind  is  fixed  for  the 
time  being,  is  obviously  more  potent,  in  behalf 
of  that  object  of  his  endeavor,  than  would  be 
possible  were  his  energies  divided,  and  were  only 
a  portion  of  himself  given  up  to  that  for  which 
he  is  striving.  And  this  power  of  concentration 
it  is  that  makes  the  man  of  pre-eminent  practi- 
cal efficiency  in  any  and  every  sphere  of  human 
endeavor — material,  mental,  and  spiritual — from 
the  lowest  plane  to  the  highest. — Duty- Knowing 
and  Duty- Doing. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 


DARING   THE  IMPOSSIBLE 

One  locality  in  Philadelphia  seemed  to  the  Trum- 
buUs  more  like  Hartford  than  any  they  had  found, 
and  there,  in  West  Philadelphia,  they  selected  their 
home,  on  Walnut  Street,  near  the  corner  of  Forty- 
first.  Spacious  grounds  of  private  residences  were 
around  them,  and  in  the  neighborhood  were  many 
whose  ideals  of  life  and  daily  interests  were  akin  to 
those  of  the  newcomers  from  the  Connecticut  city. 
Indeed,  many  New  Englanders,  among  them  some  of 
Philadelphia's  strongest  men,  had  settled  in  this  west- 
ern section  of  the  city,  forming  a  community  in  which 
the  Trumbulls  soon  were  ver>'  much  at  home.  Even 
to-day,  notwithstanding  great  changes  in  the  neigh- 
borhood. West  Philadelphia  numbers  among  its  resi- 
dents no  less  than  seven  editors  of  prominent  religious 
periodicals,  seven  officers  of  denominational  publish- 
ing, Sunday-school,  and  missionary  boards,  and  five 
Sunday-school  workers  of  national  or  international 
reputation.  In  1875  West  Philadelphia  was  none  the 
less  noted  as  a  center  of  Christian  influences. 

The  Trumbulls  found  a  congenial  church  home  in 
the  Walnut  Street  Presbyterian  Church,  of  which  the 
Rev.  Stephen  W.  Dana  was  the  pastor.  That  congre- 
gation is  representative  of  the  best  life  of  a  choice 

299 


300 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


section  of  a  noble  city,  and  in  that  church  Henry- 
Clay  Trumbull  was  a  potent  factor  to  the  end  of  his 
days.  He  led  the  Bible  class  of  its  Sunday-school 
until  within  a  few  years  of  his  life's  close.  His  five 
sons-in-law,  with  the  exception  of  one  who  was  a 
member  of  another  church,  at  one  time  or  another 
superintended  the  school  or  taught  in  it,  his  daughters 
studied  and  taught  there,  and  his  only  son  was  pupil, 
teacher,  associate  superintendent,  superintendent,  and 
now  is  his  father's  successor  in  the  leadership  of  the 
Trumbull  Bible  Union.  When  Dr.  Trumbull  was 
asked  to  what  denomination  he  belonged,  he  was 
wont  to  say  : 

"I'm  a  Presbyterian  layman,  and  a  Congregational 
clergyman,  and  the  only  religious  body  that  can  call 
me  to  account  and  discipline  me  is  the  session  of  the 
Walnut  Street  Church." 

When  he  took  hold  of  editorial  work,  Trumbull 
showed  his  knowledge  of  the  human  mind  and  its 
limitations  by  letting  go  his  field  work.  For  nearly  a 
quarter-century  he  had  been  a  public  speaker,  using 
the  platform  as  his  medium  for  communicating  ideas. 
To  be  sure,  he  had  written  much,  but  his  writings 
until  1875  were  subordinate  to  his  use  of  public 
address.  At  forty-five,  he  undertook  a  work  which 
was  not  only  new  to  him,  but  which,  as  he  saw  it, 
was  quite  contrary  to  the  genius  of  his  chief  labors  up 
to  that  time.  The  vocabulary  of  the  speaker  could 
not  be  that  of  the  writer ;  the  speaker  and  field 
worker  must  disappear  as  the  editor  and  writer 
emerged.  So  he  set  himself  to  become  just  what  his 
new  call  demanded,  with  keen  realization  of  the  fact 


Daring  the  Impossible  301 


that  all  his  experience  in  Sunday-school  work  would 
have  value  only  in  so  far  as  he  could  adjust  himself  to 
the  new  conditions. 

The  way  was  not  dangerously  easy.  While  The 
Sunday  School  Times  was  even  then  the  most  widely 
circulated  and  most  influential  Sunday-school  news- 
paper, it  had  a  subscription  list  of  less  than  twenty 
thousand.  The  International  Lesson  System  was 
spreading  in  popularity,  but  it  had  its  strenuous  oppo- 
nents even  before  it  was  fairly  under  way.  In  the 
issue  of  The  Sunday  School  Times  of  September  4, 
1875,  wherein  Mr.  Trumbull's  predecessor,  I.  Newton 
Baker,  announced  his  final  retirement  and  welcomed 
Trumbull  to  the  editorial  chair,  it  was  related  that  a 
good  sister  in  a  pioneer  region,  who  felt  that  the 
International  selections  somewhat  limited  her,  thus 
spoke  out  in  meeting  : 

**Why  d'ye  think  I  want  them  'ere  things  that 
cramps  me?  I  never  knowed  whar  the  lesson  was 
till  last  Sunday,  and  the  next  Sunday  they  tie  me  up 
to  six  varses  !  I'm  not  training  with  such  a  slow  set. 
I'm  a-goin'  to  be  free  ;  and  I'll  beat  'em  all, — front, 
aft,  and  behind  'em  !  I'm  going  in  for  a  hull 
chapter ! " 

Mr.  Trumbull  gave  no  sign  of  being  "cramped," 
and  he  went  in  for  "a  hull  chapter," — of  radical 
changes  in  the  paper,  and  masterly  strokes  that  told 
heavily.  Around  the  International  selections  of  Bible 
material  he  gradually  built  up  a  structure  of  commen- 
tary, and  brought  into  play  a  galaxy  of  side-lights  " 
that  explained  and  illuminated  the  Bible  text  as  no  one 
else  in  periodical  literature  had  tried  to  do. 


302 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


Some  months  after  Trumbull  and  Wattles  had  fairly 
begun  their  new  work,  it  became  clear  that  a  con- 
siderably larger  circulation  was  essential  to  the  very 
life  of  the  paper.  It  therefore  must  be  secured.  The 
paper  must  be  brought  into  wider  prominence  in 
order  that  its  merits  might  become  known.  The  two 
men  had  been  going  over  the  paper's  financial  con- 
dition one  day,  in  the  small  office  at  6io  Chestnut 
Street,  and  the*  result  was  anything  but  encouraging. 
Trumbull  rose  from  his  seat  beside  Wattles  with  de- 
termination showing  in  every  motion  of  his  wiry 
frame.  His  inner  purpose  was  disclosed  without 
delay. 

"Wattles,"  he  cried,  "come  in  here  with  me!" 
And  they  entered  the  little  partitioned  room  set  apart 
for  the  editor.  "Wattles,"  he  went  on,  "we  came  to 
this  work  because  the  Lord  called  us,  didn't  we?  " 

John  Wattles  nodded  his  assent. 

"Well,  John,  there  is  just  one  thing  for  us  to  do. 
We  must  right  now  place  this  whole  matter  in  the 
Lord's  hands,  and  trust  him  fully.  He  called  us 
here,  and  he  can  show  us  what  to  do." 

Then  the  two  kneeled  together  and  prayed  together, 
committing  their  affairs  to  One  to  whom  their  problems 
were  not  problems  at  all. 

About  this  time  Trumbull  was  brought  close  to  the 
heart  of  a  problem  of  immeasurable  import  to  Phila- 
delphia and  to  the  nation,  if  not  indeed  to  the  world. 
It  was  in  connection  with  the  occasion  which  gave  rise 
to  this  problem  that  he  felt  anew  the  power  of  God 
in  guiding  men  and  events,  and  was  led  to  make  the 
needed  stroke  in  behalf  of  The  Sunday  School  Times. 


Daring  the  Impossible 


303 


Plans  were  making  for  the  opening  of  the  Centen- 
nial Exposition,  and  the  chairman  of  the  Centennial 
Commission  was  Trumbull's  friend  General  Hawley. 
The  advocates  of  Sunday  opening  were  planning  in 
various  ways  to  secure  the  vote  of  a  majority  of  the 
Commission  in  favor  of  rescinding  the  earlier  vote  for 
Sunday  closing,  and  then  to  bring  the  matter  up  for 
decision  just  before  the  opening  day.  When  the 
members  met  late  in  April  it  appeared,  after  a  con- 
ference, that  a  majority  would  vote  for  Sunday  open- 
ing. 

"I  was  so  circumstanced  at  this  time,"  wrote  Trum- 
bull, "as  to  know  much  of  the  movements  of  both 
sides.  On  the  day  before  the  vote  was  to  be  taken, 
my  old  commander  and  friend,  the  President  of  the 
Commission,  told  me  of  the  situation  as  he  saw  it 
He  said  modestly  :  '  I  know,  chaplain,  that  you  have 
more  faith  than  I  have  that  God  gives  special  help  in 
an  emergency  in  answer  to  special  prayer.  So  I  want 
you  to  pray  to-night  for  God's  help  in  this  contest. ' 
That  very  utterance  showed  this  leader's  faith.  It 
was  in  itself  the  prayer,  *  Lord,  I  believe,  help  thou 
mine  unbelief  ' 

"  As  we  two  talked  together  at  that  time,  an  earn- 
est and  hard-working  advocate  of  Sunday  opening,  a 
member  of  the  Commission,  came  up  and  said  exult- 
ingly,  *  It's  no  use.  We've  got  you.  You'll  find  that 
out  to-morrow.'  And,  on  the  face  of  it,  it  looked  so. 

"Before  going  home,  I  went  to  my  office,  and  stated 
the  case  to  my  associate  in  editorial  work,  the  Rev. 
Dr.  George  A.  Peltz,  a  man  of  faith  and  prayer,  and 
asked  him  to  pray  carncstl\'  tliat    night  that  (jod 


304  He7iry  Clay  Trumbull 


would  help  in  this  crisis.  When,  on  my  knees  that 
evening,  I  essayed  to  pray  for  God's  help,  my  words 
seemed  to  come  back  to  me.  It  was  as  though  God 
said,  *  There  is  no  necessity  for  your  prayers.  I  need 
not  to  be  entreated  of  you.  Stand  still  and  see  the 
salvation  of  the  Lord  ! '  It  was  a  peculiar  experience. 
I  have  never  had  anything  just  like  it.  Yet  with  it 
came  the  conviction  that  all  was  right.  I  realized  that 
God  was  working. 

Going  to  my  office  in  the  morning,  I  found  my 
associate  there,  and,  without  speaking  of  what  had  hap- 
pened to  me,  I  asked  him  if  he  had  remembered  his 
promise  of  prayer.  *  Yes,  indeed,'  he  said,  *  and 
there  was  a  singular  occurrence  as  I  attempted  to 
pray'  Then  he  told  of  his  experience  as  almost 
identical  with  mine.  He  was  confident,  he  said,  that, 
the  Lord  had  taken  this  matter  in  hand. 

**The  Commission  met  in  Parlor  C  of  the  Continen- 
tal Hotel.  When  I  met  its  president  there  that  day, 
he  said  to  me,  *  Chaplain,  there  is  a  remarkable  change 
here  since  last  night.  They  are  not  so  sure  as  they 
were  of  carrying  their  point.     I  doubt  if  they  will.' 

"Then  I  met  Mr.  George  H.  Corliss,  whose  mam- 
moth engine  was  one  of  the  wonders  of  the  exhibition, 
and  the  motive-power  of  all  its  machinery.  He  was 
to  present  the  majority  report  in  renewed  favor  of 
Sunday  closing.  He  spoke  of  the  remarkable  change 
that  had  come  over  several  of  the  members  since  the 
day  before,  and  he  said  he  believed  that  the  vote 
would  be  different  from  what  had  seemed  probable 
twenty-four  hours  earlier." 

The  discussion  of  the  two  reports  presented  to  the 


Daring  the  Impossible  305 


meeting  was  long  and  intense.  It  was  recognized  by 
one  side  as  a  fight  for  the  American  Sabbath,  and  by 
the  other  as  an  opportunity  to  open  the  way  for 
money  making. 

"When  a  friend  of  Sunday  opening  sneered  at  the 
others  as  'narrow-minded  Puritans,'  a  member  of  the 
Commission,  whose  position  had  not  been  known, 
called  out,  *  I'm  on  that  side,  but  don't  call  me  a  Puri- 
tan. In  politics  I'm  an  old  line  Democrat ;  in  religion, 
I'm  a  Universalist.  There's  not  much  Puritanism  in 
me.' 

'Then  you  don't  believe  in  any  hell,'  said  one. 

"  *  I  believe  you'll  have  a  hell  here  in  Philadelphia, 
if  you  open  those  exhibition  gates  Sundays,'  was  the 
earnest  and  startling  response. 

"  The  feeling  had  by  this  time  reached  a  rare  degree 
of  intensity  for  any  deliberative  body.  Members  of 
the  Commission  who  had  thought  lightly  of  the  whole 
matter  at  first,  or  had  been  positively  in  favor  of  the 
Sunday  opening,  realized  that  a  momentous  issue  was 
presented,  and  that  they  must  accept  the  responsibility 
of  acting  for  or  against  the  right.  There  were  loud 
calls  of  '  Question  !  Question  ! '  by  those  who  were 
ready  to  finally  record  themselves. 

"At  this  moment  an  impressive  incident  occurred. 
Mr.  Haynes,  of  Nevada,  rose,  and  said  :  *  Mr.  Presi- 
dent, before  the  question  is  taken,  I  wish  to  say  a 
word.  I  feel  like  a  returned  prodigal,  and  I  want  to 
make  a  confession.  More  than  twenty  )"cars  ago,  I 
went  out  from  an  Eastern  home  to  the  Far  West.  I 
have  lived  since  then  beyond  the  Rocky  Mountains, 
where  we  hardly  have  a  Sabbath,  and  where  otlier 


3o6  Henry  Clay  Trumbtill 


than  the  best  moral  influences  are  all  about  us.  But, 
as  I  have  listened  here  this  afternoon,  old  memories 
have  come  back  to  me/  Here  the  speaker  struggled 
with  strong  emotion,  and  he  continued  with  choking 
voice  :  *  All  these  truths  were  familiar  to  me  long 
ago,  and  it  seems  to  me  again  to-day  that  I  hear  them 
repeated  as  I  used  to  listen  to  them  from  the  lips  of 
my  sainted  mother,  as,  every  evening,  I  kneeled  by 
her  side  in  prayer.  I  want  to  give  my  vote  in  favor 
of  observing  the  Christian  Sabbath.' 

"The  effect  of  this  remarkable  speech  was  over- 
powering. It  seemed  to  represent  the  uplifting  of  the 
whole  Commission  in  moral  character  and  tone,  and 
men  who  would  an  hour  before  have  voted  to  open 
the  exhibition  for  seven  days  in  the  week  recorded 
their  names  heartily  in  favor  of  Sunday  closing  when 
the  vote  was  called.  The  vote  stood  twenty-seven  for 
closing  to  nine  for  opening ;  and  so  the  question  was 
settled — and  settled  right.  God  had  led  the  leaders. 
God  be  praised  for  this  result !" 

***** 

In  simple  faith  Trumbull  pressed  on  to  discover 
what  God's  will  might  be,  in  the  direction  of  a  plan 
that  would  lift  The  Sunday  School  Times  into  the 
greatest  prominence,  within  the  limits  of  its  proper 
field.  The  whole  country  was  keenly  interested  in 
the  Centennial  Exposition.  Was  there  a  right  way 
in  which  that  interest  could  be  linked  with  The  Sun- 
day School  Times  ?  If  so,  what  was  the  most  striking, 
the  most  widely  impressive,  contribution  that  the  paper 
could  make  to  this  national  occasion  ? 

Trumbull  believed  in  the  good  Anglo-Saxon  doc- 


Daring  the  Impossible 


307 


trine  of  attempting  the  utmost,  whether  the  thing 
looked  feasible  or  not.  It  was  the  thing  that  couldn't 
be  done  which  he  had  so  often  found  God  ready  to 
do.  Accordingly  he  sought,  directly  and  through 
friends  in  Washington,  a  Centennial  message  from 
President  Grant,  an  address  from  General  Hawley, 
and  a  letter  from  Sir  Charles  Reed,  Chairman  of  the 
Sunday  School  Union  of  England  and  Wales,  who 
was  the  British  representative  at  the  Exposition. 

Presidents  of  the  United  States  have  not,  while  in 
office,  paid  much  attention  to  writing  for  religious  or 
any  other  papers,  but  President  Grant  was  moved  to 
do  what  the  chaplain-editor  asked  him  to  do,  as  were 
the  others  to  whom  requests  were  sent  The  Presi- 
dent's message  was  copied  throughout  the  United 
States  by  papers  of  every  sort,  as  having  appeared  in 
The  Sunday  School  Times.  Portions  of  that  mes- 
sage, as  printed  in  the  issue  of  June  17,  1876,  and 
as  given  here  in  full,  have  been  quoted  perhaps  as 
widely  as  some  of  Grant's  most  famous  war-time 
utterances  : 

Washington,  June  6,  1876. 

To  THE  Editor  of  The  Sunday  School  Times, 
Philadelphia  : 

Your  favor  of  yesterday,  asking  a  message  from  me 
to  the  children  and  youth  of  the  United  States,  to  accompany 
your  Centennial  number,  is  this  moment  received. 

My  advice  to  Sunday-schools,  no  matter  what  their  denomi- 
nation, is  :  Hold  fast  to  the  Bible  as  the  sheet-anchor  of  your 
liberties  ;  write  its  precepts  in  your  hearts,  and  practise 
them  in  your  lives. 

To  the  influence  of  this  book  are  we  indebted  for  all  the 


3o8 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


progress  made  in  true  civilization,  and  to  this  we  must  look  as 
our  guide  in  the  future. 

"  Righteousness  exalteth  a  nation  :  but  sin  is  a  reproach  to 
any  people." 

Yours,  respectfully, 

U.  S.  Grant. 

That  one  issue  was  enough  to  give  a  new  dignity  to 
The  Sunday  School  Times  in  the  pubHc  mind,  and 
to  set  in  motion  the  influences  which  led  to  an  early 
upward  tendency  in  the  circulation. 

There  was  no  time  lost  in  taking  advantage  of  that 
tendency.  The  lesson  department  was  enlarged  to 
include  regularly  such  men  as  Professor  C.  H.  Toy, 
then  of  the  Southern  Baptist  Theological  Seminary ; 
Professor  A.  C.  Kendrick  of  the  University  of  Ro- 
chester, a  member  of  the  Bible  Revision  Committee  ; 
and  Professor  Austin  Phelps  of  Andover  Theological 
Seminary,  with  many  others  of  like  prominence  as 
occasional  contributors.  And  early  in  1878  Mr. 
Trumbull  prepared  for  another  notable  issue,  broader 
in  scope,  and  far  more  difficult  to  provide,  than  the 
issue  of  June  17,  1876. 

Washington's  Birthday  as  a  national  rallying  day 
seemed  to  offer  an  occasion  for  cementing  still  further 
the  increasingly  cordial  relations  between  North  and 
South.  The  Sunday  School  Times  could  contribute 
in  its  own  way  to  that  feeling,  but  that  way  must  be 
out  of  the  ordinary.  So  Mr.  Trumbull  went  to  work. 
He  decided  that  he  would  bring  out  a  Washington's 
Birthday  number,  containing  communications  from 
the  governors  of  each  of  the  original  thirteen  states, 
and   a  message  from  President   Hayes.     He  soon 


Darmg  the  Impossible  309 


found  that  he  had  undertaken  something  that  would 
tax  him  to  the  utmost.  To  fail  in  securing  a  single  one 
of  those  included  in  the  plan  would  be  total  failure. 

When  the  presses  of  The  Sunday  School  Times 
were  ready  to  receive  the  forms  for  the  special  num- 
ber, nothing  had  come  from  the  President,  and  from 
several  of  the  governors  only  promises  or  flat  refusals 
had  come.    And  the  presses  could  not  wait  forever. 

Holliday  of  Virginia,  whom  Trumbull  knew  slightly, 
had  said  he  did  not  think  it  would  be  proper  for  a  gov- 
ernor to  write  a  letter  to  a  newspaper.  Hartranft  of 
Pennsylvania  had  never  answered  the  editor's  letter, 
nor  the  letter  of  any  one  who,  at  Trumbull's  request, 
had  written  to  him.  Rice  of  Massachusetts  and  Mc- 
Clellan  of  New  Jersey  had  not  acted  on  the  sugges- 
tion, while  Colquitt  of  Georgia  was  away  from  the 
capital  in  attendance  upon  his  dying  mother.  The 
President  had  said  that  he  would  write,  but  the  pres- 
sure of  public  business  had  interfered. 

Mr.    Trumbull,"    asked   one   of  his  associates, 
what  would  you  do  if  you  got  all  but  one  of  the 
fourteen  letters  ?  " 

'*Do!"  cried  Trumbull,  Pd  die  in  the  effort  to 
get  the  fourteenth  !  " 

An  intimate  friend  of  the  President's  was  an  inti- 
mate friend  of  the  determined  editor's.  That  friend 
went  to  Washington,  interviewed  the  President  while 
he  was  dressing  in  the  early  morning,  secured  the 
message  and  telegraphed  it  to  Philadelphia,  bringing 
to  the  Times  office  the  original  manuscript. 

Trumbull  knew  Dr.  J.  L.  M.  Curry  of  Richmond, 
and  had  been  entertained  in  his  home.     Curr\'  was 


3IO  Henry  Clay  Trumbtdl 


then  working  with  Governor  Holliday  in  some  impor- 
tant state  measures.  To  him  Trumbull  despatched 
an  account  of  the  situation  in  the  Times  office,  saying 
that  it  would  be  a  pity  if  the  only  state  not  represented 
should  be  Washington's  own  state.  In  reply  came  a 
letter  from  Curry  enclosing  the  desired  word  from  the 
Governor. 

An  old  Boston  friend  of  the  editor's  went  to  Gov- 
enor  Rice's  house  on  Sunday  morning,  and  induced 
him  to  stay  at  home  from  church  to  write  on  Wash- 
ington, which  his  visitor  told  him  was  "  Sunday-school 
teaching  on  a  high  scale."  With  the  aid  of  William  C. 
Prime,  Trumbull's  brother-in-law,  and  intimate  friend 
and  adviser  of  Governor  McClellan,  New  Jersey  was 
added  ;  and  a  friend  in  Atlanta  sent  a  stenographer 
to  Governor  Colquitt  with  a  letter  from  the  editor, 
and  beside  his  mother's  death-bed  Colquitt  dictated 
his  communication. 

Van  Zandt  of  Rhode  Island  had  said  he  would  not 
write,  so  the  shrewd  editor  asked  him  by  telegraph  to 
telegraph  a  refusal  to  print  as  his  contribution  to  the 
symposium.  That  brought  Rhode  Island  into  line 
with  a  communication  that  was  not  a  refusal. 

Hartranft  was  yet  to  be  heard  from.  The  editor 
learned  that  George  W.  Childs  could  get  that  commu- 
nication for  him  if  he  really  desired  to,  and  he  at  once 
set  about  the  task  of  enlisting  Mr.  Childs  in  the  fight. 
He  did  not  know  Childs  personally,  but  he  asked 
three  of  his  own  neighbors  to  go  with  him  whep  he 
sought  the  favor, — Hon.  E.  A.  Rollins,  Hon.  John 
Scott,  and  Samuel  Field,  one  and  all  men  of  promi- 
nence and  influence,  nationally  or  locally. 


Daring  the  Impossible 


When  the  four  called  upon  Mr.  Childs,  he  was  told 
that  three  of  them  had  come  to  ask  him  to  do  anything 
that  their  friend,  Mr.  Trumbull,  might  request. 

Mr.  Trumbull,"  said  the  great  newspaper  pub- 
lisher, with  his  pleasant  courtesy,  "you  have  im- 
proved your  time  in  Philadelphia  pretty  well,  to  have 
such  a  delegation  as  this  to  back  your  request.  Now 
what  can  I  do  for  you  ?  " 

The  case  was  stated  briefly. 

**  I  will  write  at  once  to  Governor  Hartranft.  You 
shall  have  what  you  want" 

Then,  as  all  thanked  him  and  withdrew,  Trumbull 
quickly  stepped  back  alone. 

"Mr.  Childs,"  he  said,  "will  you  kindly  write  that 
letter  now?  I  have  a  man  waiting  outside  ready  to 
go  with  it  to  Harrisburg  and  deliver  it  into  Governor 
Hartranft's  hands.  If  it  went  by  mail,  Governor 
Hartranft  might  not  receive  it  to-night.  He  might 
be  out  of  town." 

"Well,  that  looks  like  business.  I  like  that,"  said 
Mr.  Childs. 

Within  an  hour  the  man  with  the  letter  was  on  his 
way  to  Harrisburg.  He  found  the  Governor  outside 
the  city  reviewing  some  troops,  and  delivered  the 
letter.    When  he  had  read  it,  Hartranft  said  : 

"  I'll  be  at  my  office  to-morrow  at  half  past  seven 
o'clock  and  write  that  letter." 

The  next  morning,  when  the  Governor  arrived  at 
his  office  at  a  quarter  before  seven,  the  messenger 
was  tliere. 

"You  are  early,"  said  the  Governor. 

"  I  can  wait." 


312 


He7iry  Clay  Trtimbtill 


You  can  come  in  and  wait." 
When  the  Governor  began  to  write,  the  messenger 
said  : 

"  Will  you  give  me  that  slip  by  slip,  Governor,  as 
you  write?  I  have  a  boy  here  ready  to  take  it  to 
the  telegraph  office.    We  want  to  save  time." 

The  first  part  of  the  letter  was  in  type  before  the 
last  page  left  the  Governor's  desk,  and  the  fourteenth 
communication  completed  the  Washington's  Birthday 
number. 

When  the  presses  began  to  hum  with  that  issue, 
possibly  it  may  have  crossed  the  editor's  mind  that  a 
quarter  of  a  century  before,  when  he  was  about  to 
begin  his  work  as  a  clerk  in  a  railroad  office,  he  had 
heard  the  president  of  the  road  say,  with  dead-in- 
earnest  conviction,  Nothing  but  Omnipotence  can 
stand  in  the  way  of  a  determined  man  ! " 


A  PRACTICAL  IDEALIST  AT  WORK 


Unless  there  is  something  that  a  man  holds 
dearer  than  money,  he  is  a  poor  man,  or  a  bad 
one. 

A  double-mind  is  in  itself  a  failure.  In  order 
to  do  anything  well  a  man  must  be  ready  to  give 
himself  wholly  to  the  doing  of  one  thing  at  a 
time.  Two  bran-new  locomotives  pulling  in 
opposite  directions  would  be  worth  less  as  a 
motive  power  than  one  lame  mule. — From 
editorial  paragraphs. 

An  ideal  is  necessarily  altogether  of  the  im- 
agination, but  an  ideal  is  not  necessarily  alto- 
gether imaginary.  An  ideal  is  always  an  object 
of  the  imagination,  but  it  is  not  always  a  creation 
of  the  imagination.  Because  a  thing  is  in  itself 
unreal,  it  is  not  therefore  beyond  the  possibility 
of  realization  ;  because  as  yet  unattained,  it  is 
not  as  a  matter  of  course  unattainable.  An 
ideal  is  that  which  at  the  present  exists  in 
thought,  in  conception,  in  imagination  ;  it  is  a 
fancied,  but  not  therefore  a  fanciful,  standard  or 
model,  beyond  the  ordinary  or  the  commonplace 
in  actual  realization  or  attainment — Seeing  and 
Being. 


CHAPTER  XIX 


A  PRACTICAL  IDEALIST  AT  WORK 

It  calls  for  no  very  highly  developed  moral  sense 
to  admit  the  practical  worth  of  high  ideals  in  another 
man's  business.  It  is  easy  and  not  inconvenient  to 
discourse  piously  about  the  stand  that  the  other  man 
really  ought  to  take,  regardless  of  consequences  to 
himself  But  when  the  man  who  believes  in  high 
ideals  has  lost  his  breath  in  declaiming  a  program  for 
his  neighbor,  he  will  perhaps  fall  into  a  reflective 
mood,  from  which  he  emerges  with  a  trace  of  un- 
easiness. He  is  conscious,  if  only  dimly  conscious, 
that  there  is  a  hitch  in  the  program  at  one  point 
when  applied  to  his  own  life;  for  just  there  his 
reason  tells  him  that  he  would  lose  dollars  if  he 
kept  his  ideal.  And,  after  all,  isn't  it  a  practical 
world  wherein  we  must  make  various  adjustments? 

Mr.  Trumbull  and  his  young  associate,  John  D. 
Wattles,  were  most  "impractical."  In  1878  they 
bought  The  Sunday  School  Times  from  Mr.  Wana- 
maker,  who  had  owned  and  published  it  at  a  great 
expense  to  himself  None  of  these  men  held  the  dol- 
lar so  close  as  to  eclipse  the  ideals  they  had  set  up. 

"  I  saw  a  great  man  in  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  the  first 
time  I  met  him,"  writes  Mr.  Wanamaker.  "  I  had  just 
climbed  over  the  boyhood  boundary,  and  found  in  him 

315 


3i6  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


the  hero  and  fast  friend  I  was  looking  for.  We  were 
together  in  the  first  great  national  Sunday-school  con- 
vention at  Jayne's  Hall,  with  George  H.  Stuart,  John  H. 
Vincent,  now  the  bishop,  and  the  younger  Tyng. 
Trumbull's  tall  form,  and  strong  face,  already  marked 
with  deep  lines;  eagle  eyes,  alert  spirit,  and  good  sense 
always  and  unanimously  elected  him  captain.  Any 
one  could  see  and  feel  that  he  was  a  Christian  all 
through.  His  look  and  step  always  plainly  said  :  *  Wist 
ye  not  that  I  must  be  about  my  Father's  business  ? ' 
*  I  must  work  the  works  of  him  that  sent  me.' 

"  Soon  after  the  war  The  Sunday  School  Times, 
estabhshed  by  the  American  Sunday  School  Union, 
and  edited  by  Prof  John  S.  Hart,  of  the  Central  High 
School,  was  transferred  to  private  publishers. 

"  It  finally  fell  into  my  hands  more  dead  than  alive, 
and  I  undertook  its  pubHcation  as  a  religious  duty. 

"  Without  thinking  much  about  it,  I  actually  felt  at 
that  time  that  inasmuch  as  my  object  in  publishing  it 
was  not  for  personal  gain,  but  solely  to  assist  the 
work  of  the  church  in  developing  the  Sunday-school, 
that  it  was  sure  to  prosper. 

"This  blindness  lasted  for  more  than  three  years, 
when  I  woke  up  to  the  fact  that  religious  work,  what- 
ever its  form,  to  be  successful  required  the  exercise  of 
precisely  the  same  talents  as  secular  business. 

"  I  immediately  wrote  for  Mr.  Trumbull  to  come, 
and  it  was  he  who  kindled  the  light  in  the  dark  lamp 
whose  Christian  endeavor  had  been  without  any  burn 
to  it. 

**  Mr.  Trumbull  came  to  Philadelphia,  and  walked  me 
round  and  round  for  a  month  to  see  whether  it  was 


A  Practical  Idealist  at  Work  317 


likely  that  I  would  be  able  to  stand  up  under  the 
large  undertaking  I  wanted  him  to  assist  with. 

"  His  conclusion  to  come  to  Philadelphia  brought 
along  John  D.  Wattles,  and  we  three  wrought  steadily 
upon  the  new  foundations  of  The  Sunday  School 
Times,  upon  which  its  great  structure  of  usefulness  is 
built.  For  years  I  came  in  almost  daily  contact  with 
Mr.  Trumbull — Sundays  as  well  as  week-days,  for  he 
and  Mr.  Wattles  came  regularly  to  Bethany  and 
taught  classes  until  they  settled  in  the  Walnut  Street 
Presbyterian  Church.  Giving  up  the  ownership  of 
the  Times  entirely  to  them  did  not  separate  us  ;  on 
the  contrary,  Mr,  Trumbull  constantly  declared  that 
no  man  could  do  his  best  work  without  some  other 
man  close  to  him  to  hold  on  to.  To  be  yoke-fellow 
to  the  man  who  carried  in  his  heart  that  great  book 
'Friendship'  was  a  great  privilege.  It  enabled  me  to 
sometimes  touch  his  life  in  perplexities,  and  at  times 
of  ill  health  with  comfort  and  relief,  notably  once 
when  he  charged  me  with  driving  him  off  to  the  Holy 
Land.  He  always  said  that  his  *  Kadesh-barnea '  was 
my  doing. 

"The  momentum  of  Mr.  Trumbull's  life  was  felt 
throughout  the  world. 

"Each  number  of  The  Sunday  School  Times  added 
to  the  boxes  of  tools  he  supplied  for  Bible  students 
and  Sunday-school  workers  up  to  the  time  of  his  de- 
parture. 

**  He  was  absolutely  tireless  in  his  work.  His  mind 
was  a  seven-days'  loom,  never  stopping  until  the 
Master  broke  the  long  brittle  thread.  Such  a  man 
as  he  could  never  be  tired,  for  those  who  knew 


3i8  Henry  Clay  Trtimbull 


him  well  saw  a  form  like  unto  the  Son  of  God  stand- 
ing up  within  him  moving  him  on  and  halting  him 
betimes  as  the  column  of  cloud  and  fire  guided  God's 
children  of  old. 

*'The  devil  had  a  more  difficult  time  in  carrying  out 
his  purposes  whenever  Mr.  Trumbull  came  upon  the 
scene.  He  knew  when  to  be  silent  as  well  as  to 
speak,  and  his  silences  often  swayed  men  who  calmed 
under  his  eyes  that  seemed  to  say,  *  If  I  were  you  I 
would  be  more  gentle.'  So  well  proportioned  was  he, 
and  in  such  perfect  balance,  that  he  could  fairly  be 
taken  for  the  expression  of  God's  square  man  unfold- 
ing, day  by  day,  God's  way  of  life  to  man.  No  one 
ever  found  him  sitting  in  mental  twihght,  nor  did  his 
mind  become  twisted  and  tangled  or  suffer  eclipse. 
Like  an  eagle  his  soul  stretched  its  wings  in  the  sun- 
Hght,  where  he  caught  the  whole  horizon  of  highest 
duty  and  noblest  endeavor,  not  only  for  himself  but 
for  those  to  whom  his  words  were  also  heavenly  inspi- 
rations. 

"To  my  eyes  there  is  not  a  blur  on  the  memory 
coin  I  have  of  Henry  Clay  Trumbull." 

Trumbull  believed  profoundly  in  the  sacredness  of 
the  Sunday-school  as  the  divinely  planted  teaching 
agency  whose  roots  struck  deep  and  whose  fruit  was 
gathered  even  in  Abraham's  day.  Had  he  any  right 
to  be  easily  satisfied  and  cheaply  content  with  any- 
thing less  than  the  highest  skill  and  the  most  Christ- 
like spirit  in  those  whom  he  should  gather  about  him 
as  teachers  of  teachers  ?  Whether  he  could  "  afford  " 
it  or  not,  he  would  hold  to  that  ideal. 

John  Wattles,  hardly  more  than  a  fair-faced  boy, 


A  Practical  Idealist  at  Work  319 


whose  expressive  brown  eyes  and  charming  smile, 
and  agile,  well-knit  frame,  singled  him  out  as  note- 
worthy even  in  the  passing  crowd,  was  gentleness 
and  courtesy  and  frank  good  nature  inwardly  and 
outwardly.  But  underneath  his  delicacy  of  touch,  and 
his  irresistible  personal  magnetism,  there  was  a  moral 
rigidity,  an  intellectual  drive  and  cogency,  a  will  to  do 
and  to  dare  that  made  no  compromise  with  conditions, 
within  or  without.  Wattles  made  conditions.  For 
example,  he  set  up  certain  advertising  rates  which  he 
would  allow  no  one  to  upset,  and  that  stand  was  by 
no  means  a  common  one  in  his  day.  In  business 
matters  of  every  sort  Wattles  stood  for  righteousness 
first,  and  for  "  success  "  as  a  purely  secondary  matter. 

Trumbull,  in  these  earlier  years  of  his  editorial 
work,  began  his  ransacking  search  for  the  best 
thought  that  the  progress  of  Bible  study  and  Bible 
teaching  had  produced.  He  increased  his  corps  of 
helpers  in  the  office,  adding  trained  workers  and 
writers  as  his  plans  grew.  Dr.  George  A.  Peltz  had 
been  with  him  almost  from  the  start.  Later  had 
come  Charles  F.  Richardson,  as  literary  editor  ;  Pro- 
fessor Lsaac  H.  Hall,  to  have  special  oversight  of 
questions  pertaining  to  Oriental  manners  and  cus- 
toms ;  the  Rev.  Samuel  W.  Clark  of  New  Jersey, 
who  had  been  the  corresponding  secretary  of  the  New 
Jersey  Sunday-School  Association,  a  Sunday-school 
expert,  whose  son,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Joseph  Clark,  has  an 
international  reputation  as  secretary  of  the  Ohio  Sun- 
day-School Association.  And  in  addition  to  these 
came  K.  Payson  Porter  of  Chicago  (then  widely 
known  as  the  statistical  secrctar\'  of  the  International 


320  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


Convention)  to  gather  Sunday-school  information  for 
the  pages  of  the  Times. 

"  On  one  occasion,"  writes  Dr.  Peltz,  "  there  was  a 
conference  of  the  business  and  editorial  staff  upon 
certain  new  lines  of  policy.  For  a  time  there  was 
some  difference  of  opinion  on  the  subject,  but  sud- 
denly Dr.  Trumbull  smote  the  table  with  his  clenched 
hand,  and  with  a  flash  in  that  eagle  eye  of  his,  he 
exclaimed  :  '  But  this  is  The  Sunday  School  Times  ! ' 
That  closed  the  discussion  and  settled  the  principle 
that  nothing  was  too  good  for  those  columns. 

"  A  similar  incident  occurred  in  those  early  days 
when  it  became  necessary  to  secure  a  writer  for  the 
Critical  Notes  of  the  paper.  The  venerable  and 
learned  Professor  Tayler  Lewis,  then  of  Union  Col- 
lege, was  decided  upon  as  the  best  man  for  this  work. 
He  had  not  been  consulted  on  the  subject,  but  he  was 
wanted ;  so  the  associate  editor  was  dispatched  forth- 
with from  Philadelphia  to  Schenectady,  not  merely  to 
consult  with  Dr.  Lewis,  but  to  secure  his  services.  This 
was  promptly  accomplished,  and  the  closing  work  of 
that  eminent  scholar's  life  was  upon  those  very  notes 
which  are  to  this  day  remembered  with  reverent 
admiration,  and  which  mark  an  epoch  in  the  Sunday- 
school  literature  of  the  world. 

"  Dr.  Trumbull  had  a  remarkable  faculty  for  dis- 
covering and  developing  men  who  gave  promise  of 
usefulness.  One,  for  instance,  whom  he  held  in  high 
esteem,  was  a  natural  genius,  but  he  was  wofully  with- 
out culture.  The  world's  editorial  staff  would  have 
rejected  him  on  sight,  but  Dr.  Trumbull  determined 
to  use  this  man's  gifts ;  so  on  many  an  occasion  he 


A  Practical  Idealist  at  Work 


321 


brought  him  several  hundred  miles,  paid  his  expenses, 
churned  over  his  work,  and  finally,  with  credit  to  all 
concerned,  presented  the  result  to  the  Sunday-school 
world,  while  none  outside  of  that  editorial  sanctum 
ever  dreamed  of  how  these  valuable  helps  were 
wrought  out." 

A  double  number  at  the  close  of  the  year  1879, 
preliminary  to  the  second  seven  years'  course  of  In- 
ternational Lessons,  well  illustrates  the  editor's  striv- 
ing for  exalted  ideals  of  scholarship  and  practical 
value  in  his  provision  for  Sunday-school  teachers. 
In  that  issue  appeared,  in  addition  to  the  regular 
lesson-helps,  special  contributions  from  ex-President 
Sears  of  Brown  University ;  Professors  M.  B.  Riddle, 
then  of  Hartford ;  Austin  Phelps  of  Andover ;  J.  L. 
M.  Curry,  of  Richmond  College,  Richmond ;  Philip 
Schaff  of  Union  Theological  Seminary,  New  York ; 
George  Rawlinson  of  Oxford ;  Edmond  de  Pressense 
of  Paris ;  and  Frederic  Godet  of  Switzerland.  But 
even  these  were  not  enough.  There  were  contribu- 
tions in  that  issue  from  Dr.  F.  H.  A.  Scrivener  of 
London,  one  of  the  Revisers  of  the  New  Testament; 
Dwight  L.  Moody,  Charlotte  M.  Yonge,  Bishop 
Ellicott  of  Gloucester  and  Bristol;  W.  M.  Thomson, 
author  of  **  The  Land  and  the  Book " ;  Chancellor 
Howard  Crosby,  of  the  University  of  the  City  of  New 
York  ;  and  Dean  Stanley  of  Westminster.  This 
symposium  was  designed  to  form,  and  did  form,  an 
introduction  to  the  popular  study  of  the  Bible;  and 
each  writer  was  chosen,  not  because  easy  of  access, 
but  because  each,  in  the  I^ditor's  opinion,  was  the 
one  person  in  the  world  who  could  be  of  the  greatest 


32  2  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


service  to  Sunday-school  teachers  on  the  assigned 
theme. 

One  of  this  distinguished  group,  Professor  Riddle, 
still  continues  as  an  honored  and  valued  regular  con- 
tributor to  The  Sunday  School  Times.  Out  of  a  long 
and  close  association  with  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  he 
writes : — 

"It  was  at  Hartford  in  187 1  that  I  made  his  ac- 
quaintance. Not  much  time  was  required  to  discern 
his  earnestness  and  energy,  and  during  the  closing 
years  of  his  residence  in  Hartford  I  learned  to  esteem 
him  highly  for  his  personal  qualities. 

"But,  singularly  enough,  when  he  went  away  to 
Philadelphia  I  was  brought  much  closer  to  him. 
When  he  became  the  editor  of  The  Sunday  School 
Times  he  expressed  the  wish  that  I  should  contribute 
to  its  columns.  From  October  2,  1875,  until  now  it 
has  been  my  privilege  to  fulfil  that  wish,  and  in  this 
fulfilment  I  came  to  know  and  appreciate  Dr.  Trum- 
bull very  thoroughly. 

"The  relations  of  a  contributor  to  an  editor  and 
publisher,  though  simple  on  the  surface,  often  become 
quite  complex.  Indeed,  experience  has  taught  me 
that  some  disagreeable  results  may  attend  the  matter. 
But  never  was  there  any  such  result  in  these  long 
years  of  connection  with  Dr.  Trumbull.  He  was 
never  exacting,  ever  open  to  reasonable  suggestions, 
always  prompt  in  responding  to  inquiries,  faithful  to 
his  business  engagements,  and  evidently  animated  by 
a  desire  for  excellence,  rather  than  outward  success, 
in  the  journal  he  conducted.  This  was  to  be  ex- 
pected ;  for  back  of  this  lay  his  character. 


A  Practical  Idealist  at  Work 


323 


"To  me  he  was  an  ideal  editor.  But  that  was  be- 
cause he  was  a  devoted  Christian,  a  faithful  friend,  a 
loving  father.  He  was  such  a  gentleman,  in  the  best 
sense  of  the  word.  Decided  in  his  convictions,  ener- 
getic in  his  efforts,  he  was  so  courteous,  so  thought- 
ful of  others  in  all  his  intercourse.  *  He  scorned  a  lie 
as  the  gates  of  hell.'  Hence  his  own  character  was 
translucent." 

When  Mr.  Trumbull  was  considering  the  call  to 
The  Sunday  School  Times  in  1875,  he  had  the 
notion  that  the  work  of  an  editor  and  writer  might 
offer  some  relief  from  the  severe  physical  and  men- 
tal strain  to  which  he  had  been  subjected  in  his 
Sunday-school  field  work.  He  evidently  did  not 
take  into  account  at  full  value  his  passion  for  work 
as  work ;  for  the  energy  he  had  put  into  travel  and 
public  speech  was  now  put  into  his  paper,  his  Bible 
class  and  teachers'- meeting,  his  neighborhood  visits, 
and  his  writing  of  books.  He  prepared  a  biography 
for  publication  in  1880  of  Henry  P.  Haven,  of  the  Inter- 
national Lesson  Committee,  with  Mr.  Haven's  re- 
markable work  as  a  Sunday-school  superintendent  as 
the  central  theme  of  the  book.  Indeed,  he  made  it 
very  clear  that  Henry  P.  Haven,  with  all  his  world- 
wide business  activities,  laid  under  tribute  his  time 
and  strength  and  heart  and  mind  primarily  and 
unstintedly  for  his  Sunday-schools.  "  The  Model 
Superintendent,"  as  the  sketch  was  called,  is  a  book 
that  is  singularly  pertinent  to  the  most  vital  problems 
that  the  Sunday-school  superintendent  faces  to-da)\ 
Mr.  Haven's  methods  of  work  were  not  of  his  time 
alone,  but  they  illustrate  the  great  principles  of  true 


324  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


Sunday-school  management  for  to-day  and  to-morrow 
as  well.  And  Mr.  Trumbull,  knowing  the  Sunday- 
school,  and  knowing  the  model  superintendent  at 
close  range,  told  the  story  of  yesterday  with  a  zest  and 
a  pointedness  of  application  which  would  give  cause 
for  serious  reflection  to  the  superintendent  of  to-day. 

Mr.  Trumbull's  absorption  in  such  labors  as  these 
did  not  exempt  him  from  public  service  as  a  citizen 
and  soldier,  for  his  peculiar  gifts  were  everywhere 
appreciated,  and  he  was  distinctively  a  man  among 
men,  in  touch  with  the  life  of  his  city  and  nation. 

In  December,  1879,  General  Grant  reached  Phila- 
delphia at  the  close  of  his  journey  around  the  world. 
To  conclude  the  public  demonstration  in  his  honor,  a 
reception  was  held  in  the  Academy  of  Music,  where 
war  veterans  and  their  friends  packed  the  great  audi- 
torium, and  battle-flags  with  their  tattered  folds  stood 
upon  the  crowded  platform.  Governor  Hoyt  wel- 
comed General  Grant  to  the  birthplace  of  American 
independence,  and  Chaplain  Trumbull  was  deputed 
by  George  G.  Meade  Post  I,  of  which  Grant  was  a 
member,  to  extend  a  welcome  from  his  comrades. 

Grant  was  seated  near  the  center  of  the  huge  stage 
when  Trumbull  rose  to  address  him.  The  chaplain 
stood  not  far  from  the  hero  of  the  hour  as  he  began 
his  address,  while  Grant  gazed  at  him  impassively,  in 
no  way  indicating  that  he  was  an  interested  actor  in 
the  brilliant  scene.  The  chaplain  had  said  only  a  few 
words  when  he  began  to  fear  that  Grant  would  not 
rise  from  his  seat.  Speaking  more  and  more  earn- 
estly, and  with  outstretched  hand,  he  drew  near  the 


A  Practical  Idealist  at  Wo7'k 


325 


General,  but  there  was  no  change  of  expression  or 
posture.  Trumbull  was  now  thoroughly  roused. 
Grant  must  rise.  Taking  a  step  nearer,  the  chap- 
lain threw  his  whole  personality  into  his  intensity  of 
look  and  word  and  gesture.  It  was  too  much  even 
for  the  impassive  Grant.  With  deep  emotion  evident 
in  his  face,  he  started  to  his  feet,  and  grasped  the 
hand  extended  to  him,  while  the  audience,  moved  by 
a  spontaneous  impulse,  rose  and  cheered  again  and 
again  as  an  American  audience  can  cheer. 

Beneath  the  glamor  of  such  occasions  as  this  there 
was  keen  mental  distress  for  Mr.  Trumbull.  He 
found  in  the  occasion  itself  an  exhilaration  which 
was  wholly  in  accord  with  his  temperament,  but  he 
never  approached  the  hour  of  public  address  without 
suffering  severely.  When  one  of  his  friends  ex- 
pressed surprise  that  this  should  be  so  with  him, 
after  his  years  of  platform  experience,  he  exclaimed. 

"Well,  some  one  has  got  to  suffer, — either  the 
man  before  he  speaks,  or  the  audience  while  he  is 
speaking ! " 

There  is  a  truth  just  here  which  will  be  admitted 
at  least  by  audiences.  Trumbull  meant  literally  what 
he  said.  He  abhorred  careless  preparation  ;  he  be- 
lieved it  dishonest  and  unfair  to  waste  the  time  of 
an  audience  with  material  over  which  he  had  spent 
scant  time  or  thought.  For  da}'s  before  a  Wednes- 
day evening  prayer-meeting  he  would  turn  the  an- 
nounced subject  over  in  his  mind,  make  notes  about 
it  on  the  back  of  envelopes  such  as  he  might  have  in 
his  pocket,  talk  about  the  theme  with  friend  and 
neighbor,  and  when  he  used  five  minutes  of  the 


326 


Henry  Clay  Trimibull 


prayer-meeting  time,  his  hearers,  upHfted  by  his 
heart-searching,  epigrammatic  little  talks,  would  won- 
der how  it  was  that  Mr.  Trumbull,  on  the  spur  of  the 
moment,  could  get  out  of  a  subject  precisely  the  truth 
which  would  most  fully  satisfy  a  hungering  soul.  If 
any  one  sought  from  him  the  secret  of  this  ability, 
he  would  vigorously  deny  that  he  had  any,  and 
then  might  ensue  a  brief,  emphatic,  and  unforgettable 
dissertation  on  the  place  of  downright  hard  work  as 
a  habit  worth  learning. 

For  his  own  writing  in  The  Sunday  School  Times 
Mr.  Trumbull  set  sharply -defined  limitations  of 
method.  The  brief  paragraphs  on  the  first  page 
began  to  take  on  a  distinctive  character  under  his 
touch.  They  were  at  first  written  out  with  no  un- 
common plan.  But  as  he  became  more  familiar 
with  editorial  problems,  he  devised  what  became  and 
continues  to  be  a  definite  framework,  to  which  the 
concise,  paragraphic  editorials  must  conform :  first, 
a  statement  of  a  truth,  then  its  illustration,  and  finally 
its  application  to  life  and  character.  There  was  end- 
less variety  of  subjects,  but  not  of  form. 

When  one  of  his  intimate  friends  protested  that 
The  Sunday  School  Times  was  too  narrow  a  field 
for  Mr.  Trumbull,  he  flashed  out  his  notion  of  that 
narrow  field  with  : 

''Narrow?  Why,  the  field  of  The  Sunday  School 
Times  is  as  broad  as  the  Bible  and  human  character. 
That's  a  big  enough  field  for  any  man !  " 

On  the  other  hand,  he  was  intolerant  of  easy 
breadth  and  spontaneity  when  it  came  to  the  way 
in  which  the  mind  should  be  reached  by  a  truth 


A  Practical  Idealist  at  Work 


327 


from  that  wide  field.  One  of  his  helpers  brought  to 
him  a  batch  of  editorial  paragraphs  or  notes.  He 
hated  "  batches  "  of  editorials  even  as  he  shuddered 
over  some  of  the  collections  of  *'  poems  "  sent  in  by 
unwise  contributors. 

"  Here  are  some  notes  I  have  just  dashed  off," 
said  his  helper  as  he  laid  them  nonchalantly  on 
the  editor's  desk,  and  left  the  room. 

Trumbull  read  the  notes  through,  with  rising  im- 
patience. They  were  altogether  impossible.  As  he 
said  later,  in  telling  of  the  incident : 

"  He  told  me  they  were  just  *  dashed  off,'  so  /  just 
dashed  'em  off — into  the  waste-basket !  " 

Whatever  convictions  the  editor  had  were  positive. 
He  read  aloud  to  his  editorial  assistants  and  to  others 
everything  he  wrote,  getting  the  views  of  others,  feel- 
ing as  with  the  most  delicate  mental  antennae  the 
impression  that  his  words  and  sentences  made  on 
those  about  him.  He  was  remarkably  amenable  to 
suggestion,  but  closely  critical  and  boldly  unconven- 
tional in  the  results  he  utilized.  Dr.  W.  H.  Geistweit, 
then  in  charge  of  the  Times  composing-room,  and 
now  the  editor  of  Service,  the  organ  of  the  Baptist 
Young  People's  Union,  wrote  of  him : 

"He  was  tenacious  of  his  opinions, ...  as  is  natural 
in  the  case  of  such  a  man.  On  one  occasion,  I  went 
to  him  and  told  him  that  a  certain  word  he  used  was 
not  in  the  dictionary.  He  smiled  in  a  quizzical  way, 
and  pulled  at  his  long,  scrawny  beard,  as  his  custom 
was,  and  said : 

"  *  Well,  what  is  the  dictionary,  anyhow  ?  That 
word  ought  to  be  there  ! ' 


328 


Henry  Clay  Trtmtbttll 


"And  the  word  was  left  in  the  copy.  He  was  the 
most  painstaking  writer  I  ever  knew." 

On  the  longer  editorials  Mr.  Trumbull  did  his  most 
taxing  work.  He  would  get  the  title  first,  a  clear, 
succinct,  sometimes  paradoxical  title  that  would 
arouse  curiosity,  or  instant  antagonism,  or  in  itself 
stand  as  an  epitome  of  a  great  life-truth.  He  would 
always  write  the  editorial  within  the  day,  giving  it 
the  right  of  way  for  the  time  being.  It  was  the  one 
form  of  work  in  which  he  wished  not  to  be  inter- 
rupted. The  forging  of  one  link  after  another  in  the 
chain  of  his  thought  could  be  accomplished  only  by 
the  most  rigid  attention  to  his  theme. 

In  the  thick  of  the  winter  season  of  1880,  a  season 
when  the  activities  of  a  periodical  are  at  their  height, 
he  became  conscious  of  a  certain  confusion  of  mind 
which  hampered  him.  He  could  not  hit  upon  just 
the  word  he  wanted  to  use  as  he  wrote.  And  this 
form  of  aphasia  developed  to  such  an  extent  that  he 
began  to  be  somewhat  concerned.  One  day  when  he 
was  writing  an  editorial,  and  driving  his  mind  to  its 
limit  of  effort  under  the  whip  of  an  indomitable  will, 
some  one  interrupted  him  about  a  matter  of  im- 
portance. He  looked  up  from  his  writing,  the  will 
within  him  faded  into  a  tenuous,  nerveless  nothing, 
and  he  was  taken  home  with  his  mind  a  blurred  and 
inconsequent  region  wherein  his  thoughts  wandered 
vagrant  and  uncontrolled. 

It  was  by  the  way  of  that  "  great  and  terrible  wil- 
derness "  that  the  God  whom  he  loved  led  Henry 
Clay  Trumbull  into  a  new  land  of  promise. 


THE  FINDING  OF  KADESH-BARNEA 


The  very  things  that  we  are  mourning  over,  or 
are  wincing  under,  to-day,  are  perhaps  the  very 
things  that  we  shall  be  most  grateful  for,  in  their 
memory,  in  the  days  to  come.  God  is  doing 
the  best  he  can  for  us.  Have  we  any  doubt  on 
that  point  ?  If  we  have  not,  why  should  we 
worry  ? 

Determination  has  quite  as  much  as  means  or 
opportunity  to  do  with  giving  one  success.  If  a 
man  is  determined  to  do,  he  will  be  likely  to  do, 
whether  things  favor  or  oppose  him.  If  a  man 
makes  up  his  mind  that,  as  things  are,  he  can- 
not do  what  he  ought  to,  or  would  like  to,  he 
will  not  be  likely  to  accomplish  anything,  how- 
ever circumstances  combine  to  help  him.  It  is 
not  the  opportunity  that  a  man  has,  or  the  tools 
that  are  available  to  him,  but  it  is  the  deter- 
mination with  which  he  pushes  on  against  un- 
favorable circumstances,  and  with  which  he  uses 
such  tools  as  are  available,  that  settles  the  ques- 
tion of  how  much  he  amounts  to  and  what  he 
accomplishes  in  life. — From  editorial  para- 
graphs. 


CHAPTER  XX 


THE  FINDING  OF  KADESH-BARNEA 

When  the  strain  of  five  years'  work  as  an  editor  and 
writer  culminated  in  Mr,  Trumbull's  sudden  collapse, 
it  seemed  that  his  days  of  usefulness  were  over.  But 
his  physician,  Dr.  Stryker,  had  no  thought  of  refusing 
the  challenge  of  the  hour.  He  knew  his  patient  thor- 
oughly, and  he  therefore  urged  him  to  go  abroad, — 
not  to  popular  resorts,  but  to  Egypt  and  the  Upper 
Nile  country. 

With  all  his  experience,  Trumbull  lacked  prepara- 
tion for  the  part  he  saw  he  must  take  eventually  in 
biblical  research.  That  field  of  study  was  coming 
more  and  more  into  prominence,  and  as  the  editor  of 
a  Bible  study  periodical,  he  could  not  be  satisfied  to 
depend  entirely  upon  others  for  his  knowledge  of 
Bible  lands.  One  morning  he  was  in  the  study  of 
his  friend,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Henry  C.  McCook,  in  the 
Tabernacle  Presbyterian  Church,  and  was  talking  of 
his  proposed  journey.  Dr.  McCook  expressed  the 
hope  that  he  would  make  his  tour  useful  to  Bible 
students  by  fixing  upon  some  one  subject  of  interest 
to  all  such,  as  a  theme  of  special  examination  while 
in  the  East.  Trumbull  was  naturally  attracted  by 
such  a  thought  as  that,  but  at  that  time  he  saw  no 
prospect  whatever  of  a  later  interview  in  Dr.  McCook's 

331 


332 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


study,  when,  as  a  returned  traveler,  he  had  a  story  well 
worth  the  telling.  In  January,  1881,  with  George  H. 
Wattles,  a  young  medical  student  and  brother  of  John 
Wattles,  as  his  companion,  he  sailed  for  England  on 
his  way  to  the  East,  He  was  to  do  no  work,  he  must 
travel  in  leisurely  fashion,  keeping  free  from  unusual 
effort  of  any  sort.    Such  were  the  doctor's  strict  orders. 

On  the  Atlantic  voyage  he  began  to  gain  per- 
ceptibly. He  found  pleasant  fellowship  among  the 
passengers,  one  of  whom  was  a  clergyman  who  had 
been  a  companion  of  the  Rev.  F.  W.  Holland  of 
England  in  one  of  his  journeys  over  the  Sinaitic 
desert.  His  word-pictures  of  that  trip  inclined  Mr. 
Trumbull  to  a  change  of  plan,  so  that  he  might  see 
for  himself  the  wilderness  of  the  Wanderings  with  its 
wonders  of  scenery  and  historic  interest.  The  doc- 
tor's orders,  though  the  editor  did  not  know  it,  were 
beginning  to  be  disregarded. 

His  first  Sunday  in  London  was  a  day  long  to  be 
remembered  by  the  American  editor.  It  was  a  full 
day  for  a  man  who  was  resting,  but  precisely  the 
kind  of  rest-day  that  Trumbull  thoroughly  enjoyed. 

In  the  morning  he  attended  service  at  Westminster 
Abbey  He  knew  Dean  Stanley  through  corre- 
spondence, and  at  Stanley's  invitation  he  called  at 
the  Deanery  that  morning  and  was  shown  to  a  seat 
in  the  choir.  Canon  Farrar  assisted  Stanley  in  the 
service,  while  Canon  Clarke  preached  the  sermon,  a 
plain,  straightforward  discourse  against  putting  one's 
trust  in  riches  or  in  worldly  honors.  It  was  a  ser- 
mon," said  Dr.  Trumbull,  "  that  might  have  been 
expected  and  would  have  been  welcomed  in  Mr. 


The  Finding  of  Kadesh-barnea  333 


Moody's  auditorium  in  Northfield,  but  it  was  not  a 
sermon  I  had  thought  to  hear  in  Westminster  Abbey. 
Yet  I  had  more  of  a  home  feehng  in  the  London 
churches,  when  I  found  such  a  preacher  as  that  in  the 
crowning  place  of  British  royalty  on  my  first  Sunday 
among  the  London  churches." 

In  the  afternoon  he  w^ent  with  the  Rev.  Newman 
Hall,  and  at  his  invitation,  to  visit  some  of  the  sixteen 
Sunday-schools  carried  on  under  the  auspices  of  Christ 
Church,  in  Westminster  Bridge  Road,  Newman  Hall's 
charge.  "  The  schools  at  the  center,"  wrote  Trumbull, 
"  had  fine  accommodations  in  or  adjoining  the  church 
buildings.  The  branch  schools,  or  missions,  were  in 
poorer  sections  of  the  city.  What  were  called  the 
'  ragged  schools  '  were  in  wretched  localities,  out  of 
whose  crowded  courts  and  alley-ways  streamed  the 
needy  children  to  be  cared  for  by  kind  teachers.  It 
was  a  constituency  in  strange  contrast  with  that  of 
Westminster  Abbey ;  but  after  my  experience  of  the 
morning  I  was  glad  to  feel  that  the  same  Gospel  met 
the  wants  of  both." 

The  evening  found  Mr.  Trumbull  listening  to  Spur- 
geon  in  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle.  At  the  close 
of  the  service  he  was  presented  to  the  preacher,  who 
invited  him  to  go  to  the  room  back  of  the  main  audi- 
torium and  there  to  have  a  part  in  the  celebration  of 
the  Lord's  Supper,  observed  at  the  close  of  cver\' 
Sunday  evening  service  by  the  Tabernacle  Church. 
Thus  his  first  Sunday  in  London  came  to  a  close,  a 
day  of  busy  rest. 

Pa.ssing  rapidly  across  Europe,  with  occasional 
halts  for  sight-seeing,  the  two  Americans  were  joined 


334 


Hemy  Clay  Triunbull 


in  Florence  by  a  third,  the  Rev.  Allen  M.  Dulles,  then 
fresh  from  his  post-graduate  studies  in  Leipzig,  and 
now  of  the  faculty  of  Auburn  Theological  Seminary. 

Pushing  on  in  their  journeyings,  the  three  arrived 
in  Cairo  toward  the  end  of  February,  and  before  that 
time  Trumbull  had  decided  to  attempt  the  fulfilling 
of  his  growing  desire  to  reach  Palestine  by  way  of 
Sinai  and  the  wilderness  of  Paran.  Indeed,  he  had 
engaged  in  Alexandria  the  dragoman  Muhammad 
Ahmad  Hedayah,  who  had  been  the  dragoman  of 
General  McClellan,  Canon  Farrar,  Dr.  Charles  S. 
Robinson,  Lady  Cartwright,  and  Colonel  Colin 
Campbell, — a  man  of  shrewdness  and  trustworthi- 
ness, having  ample  means  of  his  own,  and  caring 
more  for  fame  than  for  money. 

On  Thursday,  March  lo,  with  a  train  of  some  fifteen 
camels,  and  under  the  desert  escort  of  Shaykh  Moosa, 
the  Shaykh  el-Belad  of  the  Tawarah  tribes,  Trumbull 
and  his  comparions  left  Suez  on  a  journey  which  they 
were  warned  would  tax  their  endurance  and  bring 
them  into  no  little  danger  on  the  way. 

Ten  days  later  Trumbull  wrote  home  from  Mount 
Sinai : 

Here  I  am  at  the  farthest  point  of  my  journeyings — I  might 
almost  say  also  at  the  extremest  limit  of  my  longings.  What 
a  place  to  be  in  !  What  a  center  of  sacred  historic  associa- 
tions !  How  often  have  I  pictured  this  scenery  in  my  mind, 
which  is  now  about  me  as  I  look  out  from  my  tent  !  How 
little  I  thought  to  see  it  in  reality  !  .  .  . 

This  desert  trip  has  been  wonderfully  full  of  interest  thus 
far.  We  were  warned  against  it  as  full  of  trial  and  privation, 
and  as  calling  for  rare  powers  of  endurance.  But  we  have 
found  it  less  trying  and  more  enjoyable  than  we  anticipated. 


The  Finding  of  Kadesh-barnea  335 


Camel  riding  is  jolly.  We  all  like  it.  And  camping  out  you 
know  /always  liked. 

As  to  the  sites  of  interest  we  have  visited,  I  must  wait  to 
tell  you  by  word  of  mouth.  To  think  of  it  :  The  Red  Sea 
crossing  ;  Marah,  Elim,  the  Wilderness  of  Shur  ;  the  Wilder- 
ness of  Sin  ;  Rephidim  ;  Horeb  ;  the  Wilderness  of  Sinai — 
what  a  list  in  rapid  succession  !  Here  I  am  now  within  sight, 
as  it  were,  by  a  sweeping  glance  of  the  places  where  Ishmael 
hunted,  and  Moses  fed  his  flocks  ;  where  the  Lord  appeared 
in  the  burning  bush,  and  again  on  the  mountain  before  which 
the  Israelites  were  encamped  ;  where  the  golden  calf  was  wor- 
shiped, and  again  where  Elijah  hid  himself  after  his  combat 
with  the  priests  of  Baal  at  Carmel.  .  .  . 

But  stop.  You  know  I  am  not  to  study,  or  think  hard,  or 
write  on  this  journey.    I  must  cut  off  right  here  and  go  to  bed. 

Pursuing  their  way  northward,  the  travelers  on 
Saturday  morning,  March  26,  reached  Castle  Nakhl, 
an  Egyptian  military  post  in  mid-desert,  and  the 
junction  of  the  great  Hajj  route  to  Mekkeh  with 
the  main  routes  from  Sinai  to  Gaza  and  to  Hebron. 
Nakhl  marked  the  boundary  of  important  tribal  divi- 
sions, for  just  there  the  northbound  pilgrim  must 
leave  his  Tawarah  guides,  and  give  himself  over  to 
the  care  of  the  wilder  Teeyahah,  with  whom  the 
dragoman  must  make  arrangements  for  escort  over 
the  land  occupied  by  that  tribe. 

Trumbull  had  made  up  his  mind  to  take  the  direct 
northerly  course  to  Hebron,  for  he  knew  that  some- 
where along  that  route  lay  one  of  the  supposed  sites 
of  Kadesh-barnea,  the  rallying  place  of  the  Israelites 
in  the  forty  years  of  wilderness  wanderings.  This  had 
been  their  objective  point  in  the  movement  from  Sinai 
to  the  Promised  Land,  their  place  of  reassembling  for 
the  move  to  Canaan.    P^rom  Kadesh-barnea  Moses 


336  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


had  sent  out  the  spies ;  there  occurred  the  rebellion 
of  the  people  against  Moses,  and  Kadesh  was  called 
En-mishpat,  a  Fountain  of  Judgment,  for  there  the 
people  were  sentenced  to  the  forty  wilderness  years. 
The  importance  of  Kadesh-barnea  as  a  geographical 
site  had  been  recognized  for  centuries,  as  pivotal 
in  the  determining  of  the  southern  boundary  of  the 
Holy  Land.  Milman  called  it  "  The  key  to  the 
whole  geography  "  (of  the  wanderings).  Dean  Stan- 
ley considered  it  next  to  Sinai  the  most  important 
resting  place  of  the  children  of  Israel."  In  1866  one 
of  the  most  noted  English  geographers,  Trelawney 
Saunders,  in  writing  of  possible  accomplishments  of 
the  Palestine  Exploration  Fund,  then  in  its  begin- 
nings, mentioned  Kadesh  as  "  one  of  the  most  hotly 
contested  sites  in  biblical  investigation,  and  the  set- 
tlement of  which  is  much  to  be  desired." 

Trumbull  was  familiar  with  the  controversy  aroused 
through  the  discovery  of  Kadesh-barnea  by  the  Rev. 
John  Rowlands,  as  described  by  him  in  a  letter  given 
in  the  appendix  to  Canon  Williams'  "  Holy  City " 
(1845).  Dr.  Edward  Robinson  had  located  the  long- 
disputed  site  in  the  'Arabah  as  'Ayn  el-Waybeh,  but 
with  inadequate  proofs.  Nevertheless,  his  usual  accu- 
racy and  his  strong  hold  on  public  confidence  gave  his 
opinion  great  weight  and  wide  currency  as  the  correct 
opinion.  But  German  scholars  perceived  that  Row- 
lands' site  was  the  more  reasonable,  and  Professor 
Tuch  of  Leipzig,  after  close  study  of  the  facts,  ex- 
pressed his  confidence  in  Rowlands'  discovery. 
Others  followed,  until  Rowlands'  site,  'Ayn  Qadees, 
had  gained  clear  title  to  respectful  consideration. 


The  Fi7idi7ig  of  Kadesh-baniea  337 


Rowlands'  report  was  in  the  form  of  a  brief  personal 
letter.  It  was  natural  that  American  and  European 
travelers,  bent  on  research,  should  attempt  a  further 
examination  of  the  site,  but  little  had  been  accom- 
plished. The  Teeyahah  guides  had  no  mind  to  dis- 
close any  portion  of  their  more  secluded  desert 
domain  to  the  conquering  **  Christians,"  nor  were 
they  inclined  to  court  the  dangers  of  an  excursion 
into  territory  which  was  under  the  control  of  other 
tribes.  They  lied  easily,  and  even  such  men  as 
Thomson  and  Palmer  and  President  Bartlett  and 
Philip  Schafif  could  not  get  near  Rowlands'  site.  In- 
deed, both  Palmer  and  Bartlett  had  been  dehberately 
misled  by  the  crafty  shaykh  Sulayman,  as  later  events 
clearly  showed. 

The  southern  portion  of  the  Sinaitic  peninsula  was 
under  the  control  of  the  Tawarah  Bed'ween ;  north 
of  them,  in  the  central  desert,  the  Teeyahah  were 
supreme;  to  the  east  were  the  Haywat;  west  and 
northwest  of  the  Tawarah  were  the  Terabeen,  toward 
Suez  and  Gaza,  while  over  the  territory  to  the  north 
of  Castle  Nakhl,  in  the  mountainous  country  bearing 
their  name,  were  the  'Azazimeh,  a  band  of  wild  and 
degraded  Arabs,  controlling  the  region  in  which 
Rowlands  had  located  Kadesh-bamea.  These  Bed'- 
ween  would  make  no  terms  with  **  Christians,"  and 
they  resented  any  trespass  of  the  Teeyahah  over  tlie 
borders  of  their  territory.  The  Teeyahah  guides 
ordinarily  could  not  escort  travelers  into  the  'Azazi- 
meh country,  and  the  latter  would  not. 

For  Trumbull  and  his  companions  there  were  favor- 
ing circumstances  at  Castle  Nakhl.    Shaykh  Musleh 


338  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


and  his  brother,  Sulayman,  at  the  head  of  the  Teeya- 
hah,  were  unavailable  as  escorts,  the  one  being  away 
on  a  plundering  tour,  the  other  disabled  by  ill-health. 
Now  Musleh  was  deeply  solicitous  for  the  release  of  a 
young  shaykh  held  prisoner  by  the  Turkish  authori- 
ties, and  having  obtained  an  exaggerated  idea  of 
Trumbull's  importance  through  the  Egyptian  drago- 
man, the  old  shaykh  pleaded  with  the  eminent  man 
who,  as  Trumbull  afterwards  learned,  the  Arab  chief- 
tain understood  was  the  Director-in-Chief  of  the 
Sacred  Press  "  of  America,  to  intercede  in  Jerusalem 
for  the  young  prisoner. 

Trumbull  agreed  to  inquire  into  the  facts  when  he 
reached  Jerusalem,  but  made  no  promise  of  success. 
The  shaykh  was  hopeful  and  eager  then,  and  he  con- 
sented to  speed  the  travelers  on  the  way  to  the  north. 
But  when  Trumbull  urged  the  route  to  Hebron,  Mus- 
leh demurred,  insisting  that  it  was  dangerous  to  skirt 
the  lands  of  the  hostile  'Azazimeh,  and  that  only  three 
parties  had  passed  over  the  Hebron  route  in  twelve 
years.  But  Trumbull  pressed  this  request  in  dead 
earnest,  and  the  Arab  finally  yielded,  sending  his 
young  son  Hamdh,  Sulayman's  son  Ibraheen,  and 
Owdy,  an  intelligent  Arab,  whose  home  was  near 
Nakhl,  as  the  desert  guides. 

Because  of  the  American  editor's  long  beard  he 
was  called  "  the  father  of  the  family,"  and  Hamdh 
was  committed  to  his  care  by  the  old  shaykh,  with 
the  injunction  to  be  faithful  and  accommodating  on 
the  journey.  On  Monday,  March  28,  the  train  of 
swift  dromedaries,  and  the  slower  baggage  camels, 
fifteen  in  all,  were  off  on  the  northward  journey. 


The  Finding  of  Kadesh-barnea  339 


At  the  end  of  the  second  day's  journey  the  travel- 
ers found  themselves  in  Wady  Jeroor,  some  sixty 
miles  from  Nakhl.  After  dinner  in  the  evening  the 
dragoman  and  the  two  young  shaykhs  were  sum- 
moned to  the  dining-tent.  Trumbull  knew  that  they 
were  not  far  from  what  Bartlett  had  supposed  w^as 
'Ayn  Qadees,  as  pointed  out  to  him  by  Sulayman. 
He  discovered  by  questioning  that  the  camp  was  now 
not  far  from  Jebel  Muwayleh,  the  point,  as  he  knew, 
whence  Rowlands  and  Bartlett  had  each  turned  aside 
for  his  search.  He  asked  if  his  party  could  not 
depart  from  the  main  route  on  the  next  day  and  visit 
'Ayn  Qadees.  To  his  astonishment  neither  of  the 
young  men,  nor  even  Owdy,  knew  of  such  a  place. 
But  Trumbull  became  certain  that  Owdy  was  sham- 
ming. With  quick  intuition  he  took  the  one  course 
that  would  make  the  wily  Arab  tell  the  truth. 

A  desert  nomad  does  not  realize  that  a  stranger  can 
know  anything  of  that  trackless  waste  by  means  of 
books  and  maps.  The  Bed'wy  is  proud,  too,  of  his 
knowledge  of  his  own  country,  and  extremely  sensi- 
tive to  any  suggestion  that  he  is  ignorant  at  that 
point. 

"  Oh,  well !  "  cried  Trumbull,  impatiently,  the 
trouble  \^^yo2c  don't  know  your  country  as  well  as  / 
do.  We  ought  to  change  places.  I  am  giving  you 
bakhsheesh  to  show  me  your  country.  Now,  you 
give  me  bakhsheesh,  and  I'll  show  yoii  your  country. 
To-morrow  morning  we  will  go  on  to  'Ayn  Muwa}'- 
leh.  Wc  will  go  past  that.  Then  wc  will  turn  off 
from  the  track,  to  the  right.  We  will  go  dow^n  that 
way  about  one  hour.    There  we  will  find  one,  two, 


340  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


three  wells.  Beyond  them  we  will  find  flags  and 
rushes  growing.  Then,  a  little  further  on  there  are 
more  wells.  That  is  Qadees.  Yoii  don't  know  it; 
but  /  do.  Give  me  bakhsheesh ;  and  I'll  show  it  to 
you." 

That  was  too  much  for  the  Arabs.  They  talked 
excitedly  among  themselves  in  low  tones.  Then  the 
dragoman  turned  to  the    father  of  the  family  "  : 

"  Mister  Trom-bool,  I  tell  you  now  the  true ;  honor- 
bright.  They  tell  me  true  now,  on  the  Quran.  They 
know  that  place  you  tell  them ;  but  they  no  call  it 
that  name.    They  no  call  that  '  Qadees.'  " 

"  Oh  !  they  do  know  it,  do  they  ?  And  what  do  they 
call  the  place  ?  " 

"  They  call  that,  *  Qasaymeh.'  " 

Then  it  flashed  into  Trumbull's  mind  that  Sulay- 
man  had  lied  to  Bartlett,  who  thought  he  had  seen 
*Ayn  Qadees.    At  once  he  went  on : 

"But  do  they  know  where  Qadees  is,  if  they  don't 
think  it's  there  ?  " 

Owdy  knew.  He  told  its  direction  and  distance 
from  the  camp,  and  how  it  could  be  reached.  But 
a  visit  to  the  place  was  impossible.  "  The  'Azazimeh 
would  rob  and  murder  any  one  who  came  into  that 
region."  So  Owdy  decided  positively,  and  so  began 
a  restless  night  for  the  determined  American,  abroad 
for  his  health.  He  simply  must  not  let  a  solution  of 
the  Kadesh  mystery  slip  him  now.  There  were  three 
places  where  water  was  to  be  found,  Qadayrat,  Qadees, 
Qasaymeh  ;  the  first  unseen  of  any  traveler,  the  second 
by  one,  so  far  as  he  then  knew,  though  he  learned  later 
of  the  visit  of  the  Rev.  F.  W.  Holland,  of  England;  the 


The  Fmding  of  Kadesh-bar^iea  341 


third  confused  with  both.  He  must  visit  all  three, 
whether  he  could  or  not.  At  daylight  he  was  in  the 
dragoman's  tent,  determined  to  arrange  for  the  journey. 

Now  Muhammad  Ahmad  Effendi  Hedayah,  No.  8 
Silk  Bazar,  Alexandria,  longed  to  appear  in  a  book 
as  often  as  opportunity  offered — "  8  Silk  Bazar, 
Alexandria"  by  no  means  to  be  omitted.  Trumbull 
knew  his  weakness.  He  told  that  able  dragoman 
that  if  he  would  help  him  to  get  to  the  three  places, 
he  would  put  him  in  a  book.  That  was  enough  for 
Ahmad.  It  was  no  easy  task  to  win  over  the  young 
shaykhs  and  Owdy,  but  the  fatherly  injunction  at  the 
start  from  Nakhl  did  good  service  now ;  and  while 
the  older  shaykhs  would  not  have  turned  aside  from 
this  main  course,  the  young  Hamdh  at  last  consented. 
American  persistency  and  acuteness  and  Egyptian 
diplomacy  were  to  open  the  long-closed  gates  of 
Kadesh-barnea. 

Early  in  the  morning  of  Wednesday,  March  30,  a 
little  party  of  eight  moved  forward,  leaving  the  camel 
train  to  make  its  way  a  short  day's  journey  to  the 
north,  and  there  to  halt.  An  hour  and  a  half  before 
noon  the  travelers  were  in  Wady  Qadees,  in  the  very 
stronghold  of  the  'Azazimeh.  The  Arabs  became 
uneasy,  actually  started  to  return,  and  were  only  dis- 
suaded by  Trumbull's  determination  to  go  forward. 
American  young  men,  he  told  them,  would  not  think 
of  turning  back  at  such  a  time.  Were  the  men  of  the 
desert  afraid?  His  words  and  his  tone  fairly  shamed 
them  into  a  change  of  mind,  and  with  some  reluctance 
they  went  on. 

Their  way  led  along  the  wady,  a  "  hill-cncircled, 


342 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


irregular-surfaced  plain,  several  miles  wide,"  until 
toward  noon  they  came  into  a  more  desolate  region, 
where  they  became  oppressed  with  the  haunting  fear 
that  perhaps  Owdy  did  not  know  the  countiy.  He 
was  constantly  "just  coming  to  the  wells,"  without 
sighting  them.  But  after  nearly  three  hours  in  the 
wady,  the  Arab  guide  led  sharply  to  the  right, 
around  an  angle  of  the  limestone  hills,  and  the  wells 
of  Qadees  were  at  last  before  them. 

"  It  was  a  marvelous  sight,"  wrote  Dr.  Trumbull. 
"  Out  from  the  barren  and  desolate  stretch  of  the 
burning  desert-waste,  we  had  come  with  magical  sud- 
denness into  an  oasis  of  verdure  and  beauty,  unlooked 
for,  and  hardly  conceivable  in  such  a  region.  A  car- 
pet of  grass  covered  the  ground.  Fig-trees,  laden 
with  fruit  nearly  ripe  enough  for  eating,  were  along 
the  shelter  of  the  southern  hillside.  Shrubs  and 
flowers  showed  themselves  in  variety  and  profusion. 
Running  water  gurgled  under  the  waving  grass.  .  .  . 

"  Standing  out  from  the  earth-covered  limestone 
hills  at  the  northeastern  sweep  of  this  picturesque 
recess,  was  to  be  seen  the  *  large  single  mass  or  a 
small  hill,  of  solid  rock '  which  Rowlands  looked  at 
as  the  cliff  (SeVa)  smitten  by  Moses,  to  cause  it  to 
*  give  forth  his  water '  when  its  flowing  stream  had 
been  exhausted.  From  underneath  this  ragged  spur 
of  the  northeasterly  mountain  range  issued  the  now 
abundant  stream." 

There  in  that  fairyland  in  the  heat  of  the  desert,  the 
travelers  noted  two  large  open  pools  and  two  stoned- 
up  receptacles  for  water,  with  a  marble  watering 
trough  near  each  of  the  latter.    "  One  thing  is  sure," 


The  Finding  of  Kadesh-barnea  343 


wrote  Mr.  Trumbull,  "  all  that  Rowlands  had  said  of 
this  oasis  was  abundantly  justified  by  the  facts.  His 
enthusiasm  and  his  active  imagination  had  not  colored 
in  the  slightest  his  picture  of  the  scene  now  before  us. 
The  sneers  which  other  travelers  had  indulged  in,  over 
the  creation  of  his  heated  fancies  were  the  result  of 
their  own  lack  of  knowledge — and  charity.  And  as 
to  the  name  of  the  oasis  about  which  Robinson  and 
others  were  so  incredulous,  it  is  Qadees  ^j**J<X5),  as  it 
was  written  for  me  in  Arabic  by  my  intelligent  Arab 
dragoman,  a  similar  name  to  that  of  Jerusalem,  El- 
Quds,  the  Holy;  the  equivalent  of  the  Hebrew 
Kadesh." 

About  three  o'clock  on  that  afternoon  the  explorers 
moved  westward  through  the  open  wady  in  their  quest 
for  'Ayn  el-Qadayrat — "  which  so  many  have  sup- 
posed Rowlands  mistook  for  'Ayn  Qadees."  An  hour 
later,  while  they  v/ere  ascending  a  mountain  after  a 
sharp  turn  to  the  north,  Owdy  caught  sight  of  a  dis- 
tant caravan  coming  over  the  pass.  There  was  instant 
consternation  among  the  Arabs.  As  the  caravan  drew 
nearer  fifteen  camels  were  descried  and  eight  'Azazi- 
meh  men,  with  about  as  many  women  and  children. 
When  the  two  traveling  parties  passed  on  the  moun- 
tain side,  with  never  a  word,  each  was  evidently  glad 
to  get  clear  of  the  other. 

Shortly  after  five,  the  descent  was  made  to  Wady 
'Ayn  el-Qadayrat,  and  Owdy  led  the  way  through  its 
fertile  reaches  into  a  spur  of  it  running  to  the  north, 
on  the  search  for  the  wells.  But  Owdy  was  be- 
wildered. The  Arabs  again  showed  signs  of  fright. 
Should  the  party  camp  for  the  night,  or  go  forward 


344  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


while  daylight  remained  ?  It  was  decided  to  go  on, 
and  in  a  half  hour's  time  they  were  in  a  luxuriantly 
fertile  spur  of  the  wady,  where,  to  their  great  delight, 
they  came  upon  a  torrential  stream  tumbling  noisily 
into  a  deep  basin  some  twelve  or  fourteen  feet  below 
them, — 'Ayn  el-Qadayrat,  the  Fountain  of  God's 
Power."  And  no  visit  to  it  in  modern  times  had 
been  recorded  by  any  traveler. 

It  was  ten  o'clock  that  night  before  they  succeeded 
in  rejoining  the  baggage  train.  On  the  next  morn- 
ing, Thursday,  March  31,  the  baggage  was  again  sent 
forward,  and  the  explorers  turned  back  to  find  'Ayn 
Qasaymeh,  the  wells  which  from  Bartlett's  description 
Trumbull  had  supposed  were  in  Wady  Qadees.  In 
less  than  two  hours  they  had  found  the  object  of  their 
search,  and  Trumbull's  determination  to  visit  all  three 
of  these  sites  was  fulfilled.  When  nearing  camp  that 
night,  he  asked  how  near  they  were  to  Wady  Beerayn. 
Owdy  had  "  never  heard  of  that  place,"  and  the  others 
of  the  party  were  ignorant  with  an  equal  density. 

"That  evening,  when  they  were  in  camp,"  wrote 
Trumbull,  "  the  Arabs  gleefully  informed  the  drago- 
man that  they  knew  Wady  Beerayn  well  enough ;  but 
they  thought  that  I  might  want  to  visit  it,  and  they 
had  had  well-hunting  enough  for  one  trip." 

What  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  found  at  the  foun- 
tains of  Kadesh-barnea,  'Ayn  el-Qadayrat,  'Ayn 
Qasaymeh,  and  the  treasures  of  research  into  which 
his  corroborative  studies  subsequently  led  him,  be- 
came for  him  in  very  truth  a  living  stream  that  ran 
henceforth  through  all  his  devoted  labors  in  the  cause 
of  Bible  study  and  biblical  research. 


THE  AFTERMATH  OF  KADESH 


No  man  ever  failed  of  doing  a  plain  duty 
because  he  lacked  time  for  it.  A  man  may  fail 
to  do  a  duty  because  he  is  unwilling  or  unready 
to  take  the  time  for  it  ;  but  in  any  event  the 
time  is  there,  he  might  have  it  if  he  would. 
Every  one  of  us  has,  as  the  old  Indian  said, 
"all  the  time  there  is."  There  is  no  excuse  on 
the  plea  of  a  lack  of  time.  We  may  fail  of 
doing  many  a  thing  we  would  like  to  do  ;  but  if 
there  is  absolutely  no  time  for  what  is  our 
supreme  desire,  it  is  not  our  duty  to  do  it 
Knowing  what  is  our  duty,  we  may  know  that 
we  have  full  time  for  its  doing. — An  editorial 
paragraph. 


CHAPTER  XXI 


THE  AFTERMATH   OF  KADESH 

Pushing  northward  over  the  desert  route,  Mr.  Trum- 
bull and  his  two  companions  entered  Palestine  by  way 
of  Beersheba  and  Hebron,  everywhere  finding  such 
light  upon  the  sacred  page  as  their  course  so  richly 
afforded. 

Still  under  the  escort  of  the  Teeyahah  Bed'ween, 
they  reached  Beersheba,  w'here  the  principal  well  was 
just  then  surrounded  by  a  crowd  of  the  fighting  'Aza- 
zimeh,  watering  their  camels.  Notwithstanding  the 
warnings  of  his  Arab  guides,  Trumbull  hurried  to  the 
well  before  the  'Azazimeh  had  time  to  warn  him  away 
from  it.  But  when  he  was  once  among  them  he  was 
a  guest,  and  he  was  asked  why  he  did  not  ask  for  a 
drink  of  water  if  he  wished  to  be  received  as  a  friend. 
Then  he  "  repeated  the  Oriental  request  of  the  ages, 
'  Give  me  to  drink,'  "  and  when  he  had  taken  water 
from  one  of  their  buckets  he  was  welcomed  as  a 
friend  in  the  simplest  pledge  of  Oriental  hospitality. 

Still  another  phase  of  the  relation  between  host  and 
guest  in  the  P2ast  was  brought  to  their  attention  at 
Dothan  where  they  had  halted  for  luncheon.  '*  Hardly 
was  our  lunch  spread,"  wrote  Trumbull,  **  when  hur- 
rying down  a  hillside  near  us  came  a  man,  a  woman, 
and  a  boy,  of  the  native  fellaheen  or  peasantry,  mak- 

347 


34S  He7iry  Clay  Trumbull 


ing  toward  our  halting-place  as  though  their  lives 
depended  on  their  speed.  The  dragoman,  who  was 
sharing  his  meal  with  the  chief  muleteer  of  our  party 
[they  had  left  the  desert  caravan  at  Hebron]  saw  the 
danger,  and  said  to  his  companion,  *  Eat  quickly. 
They  are  coming.'  But  before  many  mouthfuls  could 
be  taken,  the  visitors  were  at  hand.  The  woman, 
according  to  custom,  passed  on,  and  seated  herself  on 
a  rock  at  a  respectful  distance,  with  her  face  turned 
away  from  our  party ;  while  the  two  men  presented 
themselves  to  our  attendants.  The  dragoman  arose, 
and  with  all  the  suavity  and  gracefulness  with  which 
an  American  society  woman  would  greet  an  unwel- 
come visitor,  bowed  and  said,  '  T'fuddal' — 'Please' 
or  '  Welcome.'  *  I  am  your  guest,'  responded  the 
stranger ;  '  I  and  my  brother's  son.'  Then  the  two 
guests  took  hold  of  the  lunch,  while  the  dragoman 
and  the  muleteer  watched  complacently  the  skilful 
work  of  the  visitors,  absorbed  as  they  were  in  the 
occupation  of  the  moment." 

On  the  morning  of  April  5,  1881,  the  travelers 
passed  through  Bethlehem,  and  thence  to  Jerusalem, 
and  in  the  evening  pitched  their  tents  on  the  Mount 
of  Olives.  The  whole  scene  was  indescribably  im- 
pressive to  Trumbull,  as  he  stood  before  his  tent, 
close  to  the  walls  of  the  Chapel  of  the  Ascension, 
with  Gethsemane  just  below  him.  Across  the  valley 
of  the  brook  Kidron,  he  could  see  the  Holy  City, 
with  the  site  of  the  temple  easily  in  view. 

"  The  praying  Saviour  seemed  very  near  and  very 
real  that  night,"  wrote  Mr.  Trumbull.  "  Yet,  in  spite 
of  all  this,  in  my  weariness,  I  went  to  my  tent  and 


The  Aftermath  of  Kadesh  349 


slept.  While  it  was  yet  dark,  as  it  began  to  dawn 
toward  the  day,  I  was  awakened  out  of  my  sleep  by 
the  sudden  cry :  *  Rise  and  pray.  Prayer  is  better 
than  sleep.  Prayer  is  better  than  sleep.'  It  was  almost 
as  if  the  very  Saviour  himself  had  called  anew  to  his 
sluggish  disciples :  'Why  sleep  ye?  Rise  and  pray, 
that  ye  enter  not  into  temptation ; '  and  the  impulse 
was  to  render  to  him  his  own  graciously  suggested 
excuse :  '  The  spirit  indeed  is  willing,  but  the  flesh  is 
weak.' 

*'  But  that  startling  call  which  had  awakened  me 
was  the  cry  of  the  mu'azzin  from  the  minaret  of  the 
Muhammadan  mosk  under  the  very  walls  of  which 
our  tent  was  pitched.  Century  after  century  that  cry 
has  gone  up  there  in  the  gray  of  every  morning,  as  if 
it  were  the  echo  of  our  Saviour's  call  'to  his  disciples 
to  *  rise  and  pray.'  " 

No  experience  along  the  way  he  traversed  to  Bey- 
rout  led  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  closer  to  primitive 
rites  or  more  fully  into  the  atmosphere  of  ancient 
times  than  a  night  on  Mount  Gerizim,  where  he  had 
the  rare  privilege  of  observing  the  Samaritan  pass- 
over  service. 

Out  from  Nablus  the  remnant  of  the  ancient  race 
had  come — less  than  a  hundred  and  fifty  all  told — on 
the  fourteenth  day  of  their  month  Nisan,  and  they 
had  pitched  their  tents,  family  by  family,  not  far  from 
the  ruins  of  the  f)ld  Samaritan  temple. 

Trumbull  and  his  companions,  with  a  Christian 
missionary  of  Nablus,  the  Rev.  Yohannah  el-Kare\', 
came  upon  the  memorable  scene  as  day  was  nearly 
ended.    Two  fires  were  burning  between  the  ruins 


350  Hefiry  Clay  Trumbtill 


and  the  tents,  one  in  a  trench  at  the  place  of  sacrifice, 
within  a  low-walled  enclosure ;  the  other  outside  the 
walls,  in  a  deep  pit,  for  the  roasting  of  the  lambs. 
Within  the  enclosure  the  high-priest,  with  the  con- 
gregation about  him,  knelt  on  a  scarlet  rug,  while 
before  him  were  seven  lambs  for  the  sacrifice. 

Mr.  Trumbull  never  forgot  even  the  smallest  detail 
of  that  night  on  Gerizim.  He  heard  the  high-priest 
invoke  God's  blessing  on  the  people,  heard  him 
intone,  as  the  people  joined  with  him,  the  story  of 
the  exodus  and  of  the  institution  of  the  passover; 
he  saw  the  company  prostrate  themselves  at  the  first 
mention  of  the  name  of  Jehovah ;  saw  them  rise  and 
stand  in  silent  prayer,  putting  their  hands  to  their 
faces  whenever  Jehovah's  name  was  mentioned,  while 
the  little  children  followed  their  parents  in  every 
move. 

He  saw  the  lambs  examined  for  ceremonial  worthi- 
ness, saw  the  unleavened  bread  and  bitter  herbs  laid 
before  the  high-priest. 

Then,  just  before  sunset,  the  high-priest  stepped  on 
to  the  stone  bench  in  front  of  him,  and  looking 
toward  the  west  over  the  Plain  of  Sharon  to  the  blue 
Mediterranean  he  continued  his  recitative,  while  the 
lambs  were  led  to  the  place  of  sacrifice  close  to  the 
caldrons  over  the  fire.  As  the  sun  passed  below  the 
sea  horizon,  the  high-priest  gave  the  signal  for  the 
sacrifice.  There  was  great  excitement  then.  When 
the  children  saw  the  slaughtered  Iambs,  some  of  them 
began  to  sob  and  cry  aloud.  But  it  was  a  time  of 
rejoicing  in  the  progress  of  the  service,  a  time  of 
hearty  embraces  and  glad  congratulation. 


The  Aftermath  of  Kadesh  351 


At  once  the  lambs  were  made  ready  for  the  oven, 
and  the  high-priest  retired  to  his  tent,  where  the 
Americans  were  welcomed  as  his  guests.  He  gave 
them  of  the  ''bitter  herbs"  to  taste,  for  a  foreigner 
may  share  the  bitterness  of  the  passover  feast,  while 
he  can  have  no  taste  of  the  paschal  lamb." 

Just  before  midnight  the  cry  was  sounded  that  the 
lambs  were  ready,  and  priest  and  people  hurried  from 
their  tents.  They  were  clad  as  for  a  journey.  A 
storm  had  gathered  and  rain  was  already  falling. 
The  roasted  meat  was  taken  from  the  oven  pit,  and 
placed  in  baskets  which  were  set  in  a  line  within  the 
stone  enclosure. 

"  At  this  moment,"  wrote  Dr.  Trumbull  in  describ- 
ing the  scene,  "  there  was  a  lull  in  the  storm.  The 
clouds  broke  away,  and  the  full  moon — for  of  course 
it  was  the  night  of  the  full  moon — shone  out  on  that 
weird  scene  on  the  summit  of  Gerizim.  There 
crouched  the  girded  and  shod  pilgrims, — not  stand- 
ing, as  in  olden  time,  but  sitting  or  crouching  in 
Oriental  style, — the  last  surviving  celebrants  of  the 
sacrificial  feast  which  Moses  instituted,  at  the  com- 
mand of  God,  on  that  memorable  night  of  deliverance 
from  the  angel  of  death  in  the  land  of  Egypt,  more 
than  thirty  centuries  ago.  The  whole  story  of  the 
passover  never  seemed  so  real  before.  The  men  ate 
in  haste.  Portions  were  taken  to  the  women  in  their 
tents.  Whatever  remained  of  the  lamb — meat  or 
bone — was  carefully  gathered  up  and  burned  in  the 
fire."  After  the  feast  the  Samaritans  continued  in 
prayer  until  daybreak,  when  they  returned  to  their 
tents,  for  the  seven  days'  feast  of  unleavened  bread. 


352  Henry  Clay  Trumbtdl 

It  was  from  such  scenes  as  this,  in  such  surround- 
ings, so  rich  in  Oriental  color,  so  full  of  suggestion 
to  the  Bible  student,  that  Trumbull  drew  a  wealth 
of  deductions  for  his  future  study  and  researches. 
Shortly  before  he  left  Palestine  he  wrote  to  Mrs. 
Trumbull : 

The  more  I  see  of  the  East  the  more  important  to  me  my 
visit  to  it  becomes.  It  actually  seems  as  if  I  should  be  a 
totally  different  person  on  my  return,  if  God  brings  me  to  my 
home  and  work  again.  All  that  I  have  ever  learned  up  to 
this  time  has  now  new  relations  ;  and  all  that  I  may  learn  by 
future  study  will  come  into  a  new  atmosphere  of  thought  and 
feeling,  and  be  viewed  in  a  new  light  of  understanding.  I 
believe  that  I  shall  be  a  tenfold  better  editor  and  Bible  class 
teacher  because  of  this  visit.  I  pray  that  I  may  be  a  truer 
child  of  God  and  follower  of  Jesus  Christ  in  my  home  and 
personal  life  as  a  result  of  the  lessons  I  am  learning. 

In  London  again  on  his  way  home,  Trumbull  called 
on  Walter  Besant,  the  organizer  and  secretary  of  the 
Palestine  Exploration  Fund  Society,  in  order  that  he 
might  test  his  desert  discovery  by  such  facts  as  the 
Society  might  have.  Mr.  Besant  became  keenly  in» 
terested.  He  put  at  Trumbull's  disposal  sources  of 
information  such  as  the  American  was  seeking.  Pro- 
fessor E.  H.  Palmer,  later  murdered  in  the  desert,  had 
tried  in  vain  to  find  the  site  of  Kadesh-barnea.  Mr. 
Besant  sent  for  him  to  meet  Trumbull  at  his  office, 
where  a  brief  interview  made  it  clear  to  both  that  the 
place  had  been  found.  Then  Mr.  Besant  heartily 
congratulated  Trumbull  on  his  discovery,  and  per- 
suaded him  to  make  it  known  in  the  Quarterly  State- 
ment of  the  Palestine  Exploration  Fund. 

Two  other  incidents  of  this  London  visit  were 


The  After7nath  of  Kadesh 


353 


among  Dr.  Trumbull's  cherished  memories.  The  first 
was  the  hearing  of  Gladstone  in  the  House  of  Com- 
mons, the  second,  a  meeting  with  Bishop  EUicott 

While  still  in  the  East,  in  April,  he  had  heard  of 
the  death  of  Beaconsfield.  It  was  only  a  month  later 
that  he  was  in  London.  He  wrote  a  note  to  Mr. 
Gladstone,  asking  if  he  would  kindly  send  him  cards 
for  himself  and  a  friend  for  admission  to  a  session  of 
the  House  of  Commons,  stating  as  he  made  the  re- 
quest the  day  on  which  he  would  sail  from  Liverpool. 
Promptly  Mr.  Gladstone  sent  two  cards  for  the  Speak- 
er's Gallery  for  the  last  evening  before  the  date  of 
sailing.  That  night  Gladstone  made  one  of  his  great 
speeches  on  the  Irish  Land  Bill,  when  the  opposi- 
tion was  taking  issue  with  the  Liberal  ministry.  He 
had  three  separate  constituencies  to  consider:  his  own 
party,  the  Irish  party,  and  the  Conservatives  squarely 
opposed  to  the  Ministry. 

Lord  Salisbury  was  then  the  leader  of  the  Con- 
servative party,  and  Sir  Stafford  Northcote  its  leader 
in  the  House  of  Commons,  a  man  of  great  ability, 
but  no  match  for  Gladstone  in  debate.  In  describing 
the  debate  Trumbull  wrote  : — 

"As  if  in  mere  incidental  remark,  Mr.  Gladstone 
suggested  that  it  would  not  be  wise  for  the  opposi- 
tion to  overthrow  the  Liberal  Ministry ;  even  if  it 
could  do  so  on  this  Irish  Land  Bill  issue,  and  thus 
come  into  power  with  the  responsibility  of  managing 
it  some  other  way.  Lord  Beaconsfield,  he  was  sure, 
would  not  have  advised  this.  '  I  have  had  a  long  ex- 
perience of  Lord  Beaconsfield,'  he  said,  '  and  you  do 
not  remain  wholly  ignorant  of  a  man  with  whom  on 


354  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


a  thousand  questions  you  are  obliged  however  un- 
equally to  measure  swords.' 

"  The  'Grand  Old  Man'  turning  at  this  point  to  the 
*  Grand  Old  Woman '  [as  the  gentle  Sir  Stafford 
Northcote  was  sometimes  called]  as  if  in  kindly  pity 
for  him  because  Lord  Salisbury,  the  unwise  leader  of 
his  party  had  laid  this  burden  on  his  shoulders,  said 
in  gentle  commiseration :  *  When  I  found  that  the 
leader  of  the  opposition  had  decided  to  make  a  direct 
issue  with  the  Government  on  this  particular  measure, 
I  was  reminded  anew — that  Lord  Beaconsfield  is  dead.' 

"  The  effect  was  crushing,  the  needed  votes  were 
secured.  There  was  another  oratorical  triumph  of 
the 'Grand  Old  Man.'" 

On  the  evening  of  May  lO,  Trumbull  attended  the 
Thirty-Seventh  Anniversary  of  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land Sunday-School  Institute  in  Exeter  Hall.  There 
for  the  first  time  he  met  Bishop  Charles  J.  EUicott,  of 
Gloucester  and  Bristol,  who  was  chairman  of  the  New 
Testament  Company  of  the  English  Revision  Com- 
mittee from  1870  to  1 88 1,  and  who  wrote  the  Preface 
to  that  Revision,  which  was  to  be  given  to  the  public 
in  another  week. 

During  the  meeting  he  sent  his  card  to  Mr.  John 
Palmer,  the  secretary,  stating  that  he  would  be  glad 
to  meet  him  at  the  close  of  the  service,  and  received 
an  invitation  to  come  at  that  time  to  the  room  back 
of  the  platform.  He  noticed  that  Mr.  Palmer  after- 
wards showed  his  card  to  the  Bishop. 

When  he  joined  Mr.  Palmer  in  the  rapidly  filling 
room  after  the  service,  Bishop  Ellicott  came  down  the 
platform  steps  into  the  crowd,  saying  in  a  loud  voice, 


The  Aftermath  of  Kadesh  355 


"Is  Mr  Trumbull  of  America  in  the  room?" 

The  editor  stepped  forward  and  spoke  to  the  Bishop. 

"Is  this  Mr.  Clay  Trumbull  of  The  Sunday  School 
Times?"    When  he  was  assured  of  that,  he  added : 

"  That's  a  very  remarkable  paper  you  have,  Mr. 
Trumbull.  We  have  nothing  like  it  in  this  country. 
You  have  a  way  of  securing  contributors  from  all  di- 
rections. I  believe  you  got  something  from  me.  I 
don't  know  how  you  did  it.  Our  New  Testament 
Revisers  have  valued  its  articles  in  our  work,  and  we 
have  had  frequent  occasion  to  refer  to  them.  Indeed 
in  the  preface  to  the  Revised  New  Testament,  which 
is  to  appear  next  Tuesday,  there  is  a  point  which  was 
introduced  inconsequence  of  an  article  in  your  paper." 

"  This  is  very  gratifying,  my  lord,"  responded 
Trumbull,  "  may  I  be  privileged  to  make  mention  of 
these  facts  ?  " 

At  this  Bishop  EUicott  shrugged  his  shoulders,  and 
the  editor  hastened  to  add, 

"I  am  sure  it  would  gratify  our  American  friends 
to  know  that  you  had  spoken  so  highly  of  an  Ameri- 
can paper,  if  I  might  make  it  known." 

"  As  to  my  estimate  of  your  paper,"  was  the  answer, 
*'  you  can  repeat  that  without  hesitation.  As  to  my 
mention  of  the  reference  in  the  Preface,  as  it  is  not 
publicly  known  who  wrote  that,  I  should  not  feel  free 
to  make  it  public  at  this  time." 

That  restriction  was  removed  by  the  later  disclosure 
of  the  fact  in  other  ways.  And  this  was  not  the  only 
testimony  of  Bishop  Ellicott  to  the  value  of  the  Ameri- 
can Sunday-school  periodical,  for  he  would  not  allow 
his  files  of  it  to  be  incomplete,  writing  at  one  time  to 


35 6  He7iry  Clay  Trumbull 


Mr.  Trumbull  to  ask  for  back  numbers,  and  explain- 
ing that  he  had  the  volumes  bound  from  year  to  year, 
and  that  if  he  had  a  diocesan  address  to  make,  and 
was  at  a  loss  for  a  subject,  he  took  up  one  of  these 
volumes,  and  did  not  need  to  look  far  for  a  sug- 
gested theme. 

Dr.  William  Wright,  of  London,  once  told  the 
astute  American  editor  of  a  remark  of  Bishop  Ellicott 
to  the  effect  that  Mr.  Trumbull  of  The  Sunday  School 
Times  could  tell  what  a  man  was  thinking  of  before 
he  said  anything  about  it.  The  Bishop  doubtless  got 
that  impression  from  the  instant  appeal  that  was  made 
to  his  interest  by  the  title  of  an  article  which  Trum- 
bull had  suggested  he  should  write  for  The  Sunday 
School  Times,"  The  Influence  of  Christ's  Teachings 
on  His  Apostles."  The  Bishop  was  just  leaving  for 
the  continent  when  the  letter  came,  and  would  have 
declined — if  he  could.  But  he  had  never  heard  the 
subject  mentioned  before  in  just  that  way,  although 
he  had  often  thought  of  it  as  a  theme  worthy  of 
special  attention.    He  agreed  to  prepare  the  article. 

Trumbull  knew  in  advance,  from  what  Ellicott  had 
already  written  concerning  the  life  of  Jesus  and  the 
writings  of  the  Apostles,  that  the  theme  would  be 
more  than  likely  to  strike  him  favorably.  That 
knowledge  of  men  and  their  work,  gained  in  a  hun- 
dred ways,  was  an  indispensable  part  of  the  editor's 
equipment. 

When  Mr.  Trumbull  reached  home  in  May,  after 
all  these  refreshing  experiences,  he  at  once  began  the 
preparation  of  his  volume  on  Kadesh-barnea.  His 


The  Aftermath  of  Kadesh  357 


health  was  splendidly  restored,  he  was  ready  for  work, 
and  he  set  himself  to  the  new  task  with  ardor,  and, 
as  it  proved  in  the  end,  with  consummate  skill. 

Trumbull  had  studied  neither  Greek  nor  Hebrew 
as  the  schools  count  study,  nor  was  he  familiar  with 
any  modern  language  other  than  his  mother  tongue. 
Yet  he  must  apply  the  test  of  scholarship  to  his 
discovery  of  Kadesh-barnea ;  he  must  scientifically 
prove  his  conclusions,  a  course  that  would  carry  him 
far  in  the  linguistic  field,  as  he  very  soon  discovered. 
For  the  literature  bearing  on  the  exodus  and  the  wan- 
dering, and  on  the  geography  and  topography  of  the 
Arabian  peninsula  was  not  sufficiently  full  in  English 
for  his  purpose.  Just  here  a  peculiarity  of  his  intel- 
lect came  into  full  play. 

While  he  was  familiar  with  no  foreign  tongue,  his 
intuitive  sense  of  word  significance  enabled  him  to 
trace  key-words  through  their  dictionary  meanings  to 
the  shade  of  meaning  which  they  had  when  used  in 
varied  connections.  A  word  to  him  was  no  mere 
label.  It  had  life  and  fluency  and  elasticity,  and  he 
could  follow  with  pliant  mind  wherever  its  true  and 
deepest  meaning  might  lead.  When,  therefore,  he 
ran  across  a  reference  to  a  German  or  a  Hebrew 
treatise  in  his  investigations,  he  would  get  the  book, 
look  up  the  reference,  study  the  passage  as  best  he 
could  with  the  aid  of  a  dictionary,  and  if  he  found  any- 
thing he  wanted,  he  would  turn  it  over  to  an  expert 
for  full  translation.  A  learned  minister  who  attended 
his  Bible  class  was  asked  if  Trumbull  understood 
Hebrew.  "  He  does,  and  he  doesn't,"  was  the  an- 
swer.   "  He  never  learned  it  as  a  language,  but  some- 


358  Henry  Clay  Triunhdl 


how  he  gets  at  all  that  a  knowledge  of  it  could  do  for 
him." 

In  his  two  years  and  a  half  of  study,  with  his  dis- 
covery of  Kadesh-barnea  as  a  starting-point,  Trum- 
bull became  freely  conversant  with  the  world's  biblical 
scholarship.  While  pushing  forward  with  ever-enlarg- 
ing plans  for  The  Sunday  School  Times,  and  never 
abating  his  editorial  writing  or  church  and  Sunday- 
school  work,  Trumbull  examined  more  than  two 
thousand  volumes  in  seven  languages,  in  the  principal 
libraries  of  America,  and  maintained  an  active  corre- 
spondence with  European  scholars  in  his  search  for 
all  the  light  that  foreign  libraries  could  give  him. 

He  caught  at  fragments  of  time  day  or  night.  One 
evening  he  appeared  at  the  home  of  his  brother-in- 
law,  William  C.  Prime,  in  New  York  City,  on  a  hunt 
for  ancient  and  medieval  maps  of  the  East,  of  which 
Dr.  Prime,  himself  an  extensive  traveler,  had  a  fine 
collection.  When  the  household  had  retired  for  the 
night,  about  one  o'clock,  Trumbull  was  still  at  work 
in  the  library,  with  maps  all  about  him  on  the  floor. 
When  the  family  came  down  to  breakfast  before  eight, 
they  found  that  he  had  been  gone  for  some  time,  and 
was  then  well  on  his  way  to  Philadelphia. 

In  all  this  difficult  and  taxing  work  he  had  by  his 
side  an  assistant  such  as  few  men  have  ever  known,  a 
young  Scotchman  named  John  T.  Napier,  who  died 
before  his  name  had  become  known  outside  a  com- 
paratively small  circle.    Of  him  Trumbull  wrote : 

"  In  breadth  and  thoroughness  of  scholarship,  in 
clearness  of  thought,  in  quickness  of  perception,  in 
delicacy  of  sentiment,  and  in  versatility  of  intellectual 


TJie  Aftermath  of  Kadesh 


359 


power,  Mr.  Napier  was  the  most  remarkable  man  I 
have  ever  known.  As  a  scholar  in  Hebrew,  in  Arabic, 
and  in  Egyptian,  he  certainly  had  few  peers  in 
America.  .  .  .  He  claimed  nothing,  he  sought  nothing, 
for  himself.  .  .  .  Without  his  aid  I  could  not  have  ac- 
complished even  a  tithe  of  the  work  I  have  been  per- 
mitted to  compass  .  .  .  and  for  his  abounding  and 
unselfish  service  I  am  profoundly  grateful." 

Aside  from  its  value  as  a  contribution  to  biblical 
research  Dr.  Trumbull's  "  Kadesh-barnea "  repays 
study  as  exhibiting  a  method  of  marshaling  evidence 
overwhelmingly,  with  German  thoroughness,  British 
force,  and  American  proclivity  for  following  a  trail  to 
the  very  end.  Trumbull  shows  why  Kadesh  has  any 
importance,  discusses  in  close  detail  the  biblical  indi- 
cations of  its  site,  considers  the  ancient  references  to 
it  outside  the  Bible  text,  including  a  study  of  the 
Egyptian  records,  the  Apocrypha,  the  rabbinical 
writings,  and  the  early  Christian  name  lists.  Then 
he  proceeds  to  set  forth  in  vivid  narrative  the  story 
of  attempts  at  its  identifying  from  the  eleventh  cen- 
tury to  the  days  of  Robinson  and  Rowlands  and 
Palmer  and  Holland,  following  with  the  absorbing 
account  of  his  own  visit,  and  a  masterly  comparison 
of  the  evidence  for  and  against  the  eighteen  suggested 
sites. 

And  then,  as  though  his  tireless  energy  of  research 
could  not  be  satisfied  with  having  found  the  long  lost 
site  of  the  Israelitish  rallying  station,  and  out  of  the 
fulness  of  the  rising  tide  of  a  passion  for  research, 
he  closes  his  volume  with  a  study  of  the  route  of  the 
exodus,  pivoting  his  conclusions  on  his  study  of  the 


360  Henry  Clay  Tricmbull 


location  of  the  Great  Wall  of  Egypt,  and  the  Red  Sea 
crossing.  It  was  Henry  Clay  TrLimbuU's  way  to  sup- 
plement whatever  he  had  done  with  all  that  he  could 
do,  and  the  supplement  was  often  not  less  valuable 
than  that  to  which  it  was  added. 

"  Kadesh-barnea"  aroused  the  keenest  interest  of 
scholars  not  only  at  home,  but  in  foreign  centers  of 
Biblical  criticism  and  research.  Sayce  of  Oxford 
called  the  book  "a  model  of  what  archeological  re- 
search and  reasoning  ought  to  be,  one  of  the  few 
archeological  books  in  which  the  author  knows  how 
to  prove  his  point  by  what  constitutes  a  sound  argu- 
ment." Guthe  of  Leipzig  at  once  published  liberal 
extracts  from  the  book  in  the  German  Palestine  Ex- 
ploration Fund  quarterly,  with  critical  and  apprecia- 
tive comments.  Scholars  of  every  type,  w^hether 
agreeing  or  not  agreeing  with  Trumbull's  conclusions, 
did  not  hesitate  to  accord  him  a  high  place  in  the 
comparatively  small  group  of  distinguished  partici- 
pants in  carefully  scientific  and  vigorously  indepen- 
dent biblical  research.  "  Kadesh-barnea "  changed 
the  map  of  Bible  lands  from  a  state  of  confusion  as 
to  the  great  rallying-place  of  the  Israelites  in  their 
wanderings,  to  a  wide  recognition  of  Trumbull's  site 
as  correct. 


A  WRITER  OF    MARKED  BOOKS " 


Having  a  plan  must  go  before  having  a  work 
If  a  man  does  not  know  just  what  he  wants  to 
do,  he  is  not  likely  to  do  it.  A  plan  does  not 
grow  in  a  man's  mind,  as  he  works  at  details, 
without  a  well-defined  purpose  that  includes 
those  details.  Unless  a  worker  in  leather  knows 
at  the  start  whether  it  is  a  shoe  or  a  saddle  that 
he  wants  to  make,  he  is  sure  to  waste  both  time 
and  material  at  every  step  in  his  course.  A 
skilled  writer  is  not  prepared  to  shape  his  first 
paragraph  until  he  has  a  well-defined  idea  of 
the  object  and  outline  and  conclusion  of  his 
essay  or  of  his  volume.  Most  of  the  waste  work 
of  the  world  is  a  result  of  beginning  to  work 
without  a  plan  that  includes  the  middle  and  the 
end  of  that  which  is  begun. — An  editorial  para- 
graph. 


CHAPTER  XXII 

A  WRITER  OF  "  MARKED  BOOKS  " 

Even  as  the  Israelites  of  old  had  found  in  Kadesh- 
barnea  a  rallying-place  from  which  they  should  enter 
the  Land  of  Promise,  so  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  found 
in  his  study  of  that  sacred  site  a  rallying-place  where 
his  peculiar  powers  of  investigation  and  exposition 
gathered  themselves  for  further  conquest.  He  had 
realized  that  he  was  returning  to  America  with  an 
equipment  which  would  put  him  under  obligation  to  go 
deeply  into  the  relations  of  primitive  customs  to  ethnic 
and  religious  problems.  His  volume  on  Kadesh-barnea 
gave  him  at  once  a  standing  among  sane  and  discern- 
ing critics  and  scholars  in  the  field  of  biblical  research, 
while  the  labor  of  preparation  was  rich  in  by-products 
of  no  slight  value.  The  wells  of  Kadesh  did  not  run 
dry.  The  field  of  biblical  research  was  fascinating  to 
Dr.  Trumbull.  Every  aspect  of  it  appealed  to  his  pas- 
sion for  exploration,  to  his  devotion  to  the  mission  of 
setting  men  right  in  biblical  interpretation. 

But  no  sooner  was  "  Kadesh-barnea "  published 
than  he  became  immersed  in  a  work  of  a  different 
tenor,  for  which  his  experience  in  the  Sunday-school 
as  an  institution  furnished  him  with  abundant  ma- 
terial, and  for  which  his  sympathetic  and  yet  rigidly 
systematic  mind  gave  him  tools  and  a  method. 

363 


364  He7iry  Clay  Trumbull 


There  was  then  no  book  which  could  be  called  a 
complete  and  thorough  and  easily  understood  treatise 
on  the  work  of  the  Sunday-school  teacher.  Such  a 
book  was  greatly  needed,  a  book  so  true  to  scientific 
pedagogy  and  so  close  to  the  life  of  the  untrained 
teacher  that  it  could  be  regarded  as  a  clear  and 
practical  manual  embodying  amply  illustrated  and 
thoroughly  sound  educational  principles,  —  without 
the  use  of  purely  technical  terms.  Trumbull  had  no 
patience  with  the  use  of  terms  that  succeeded,  indeed, 
in  showing  a  writer's  knowledge  of  terminology  and 
that  failed  to  convey  any  definite  idea  to  the  mind  of 
the  untrained  reader. 

"  Kadesh-barnea  "  had  appeared  in  December,  1883. 
In  September,  1884,  **  Teaching  and  Teachers"  was 
pubhshed. 

Many  Sunday-school  teachers  discovered  in  it  ex- 
actly the  inspiration  and  the  definite,  clearly  stated, 
richly  illustrated  principles  of  teaching  by  which  their 
own  work  might  be  measured  and  improved.  Others 
read  the  table  of  contents,  a  few  pages  of  the  text,  and 
gave  up  the  rest  of  the  book,  to  retire  into  subjec- 
tive musings  on  the  folly  of  any  man  who  would 
think  of  putting  Sunday-school  teaching  on  such  a 
high  plane.  Why,  if  what  Trumbull  said  were  true, 
then  they  were  not  now,  and  never  had  been,  Sunday- 
school  teachers  !  Such  a  book  was  discouraging, 
baffling.  No  one  could  be  a  teacher,  a  Sunday- 
school  teacher,  such  as  Trumbull  pictured.  What 
did  the  man  mean  ?  All  Sunday-school  teachers 
ought  to  be  teachers  in  the  Sunday-school."  Of 
course.    "  Being  teachers  in  the  Sunday-school,  they 


A  Writer  of  ''Marked  Books''  365 


ought  to  teach  in  the  Sunday-school."  And  why 
not  ?  "  In  order  to  teach  in  the  Sunday-school,  they 
need  to  know  what  teaching  is."  Well,  who  doesn't 
know  that  \  "  An  initial  purpose  of  this  volume  is 
so  to  designate  and  define  the  nature  and  methods, 
and  so  to  indicate  the  comparative  rarity,  of  proper 
Sunday-school  teaching,  as  will  enable  Sunday-school 
teachers  to  know  whether  or  not  they  are,  or  ever 
have  been,  teachers  in  the  Sunday-school.  There  is 
practical  need  of  honest  doubt  at  this  point,  especi- 
ally on  the  part  of  those  who  have  never  supposed 
there  was  any  cause  of  questioning  just  here."  And 
just  here  many  a  limp  intellect  parted  company  with 
an  author  who  could  make  one  so  uncomfortable. 
But  the  keener  sort  would  chuckle  with  appreciation, 
and  hurry  to  get  into  step  with  a  man  on  such  a  track 
as  that. 

And  **  Teaching  and  Teachers  "  was  no  random 
stroll  over  easy  paths.  There  was  the  somcAvhat 
unnerving  preliminary  statement  here  quoted  in  part, 
then  a  section  under  the  paradoxical  title  "  Not  all 
Teaching  is  Teaching,"  then  "  Telling  is  Not  Teach- 
ing," and  Hearing  a  Recitation  is  Not  Teaching  "  ; 
while  "  What  Teaching  Is  "  closed  with  positive  defi- 
nition the  first  chapter.  Under  the  second  chapter 
were  found  sections  on  You  Must  Know  Whom 
You  Are  to  Teach,"  "  You  Must  Know  What  You 
Are  to  Teach,"  "You  Must  Know  How  You 
Are  to  Teach."  Thus  the  line  of  thought  pressed 
on,  straight  and  shining,  never  wandering,  always 
getting  somewhere,  and  that  somewhere  always  the 
logical  end  of  the  beginning.    "  Teaching  and  Teach- 


366  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


ers "  at  once  became  the  standard  work  on  that 
theme.  How  thoroughly  Dr.  Trumbull  performed 
his  task,  and  how  securely  the  result  was  based  upon 
the  great  fundamentals  of  education,  is  shown  in  the 
undisputed  supremacy  of  "  Teaching  and  Teachers  " 
in  the  field  it  occupies.  Indeed,  no  other  book  has 
been  produced  which  attempts  so  completely,  and  in 
so  untechnical  language,  to  treat  of  the  place  and 
work  of  the  Sunday-school  teacher.  With  one  ex- 
ception ("  Individual  Work  for  Individuals"),  it  has 
had,  and  continues  to  have,  a  larger  circulation  than 
any  other  of  Dr.  Trumbull's  books.  Nor  has  its  use 
been  confined  to  the  Sunday-school,  for  leaders  in 
secular  education  have  urged  it  upon  teachers  as  a 
normal  text-book. 

While  he  was  yet  at  work  on  his  study  of  Kadesh- 
barnea,  Dr.  Trumbull  was  going  forward  with  another 
study  which  had  won  his  interest  even  before  he  went 
to  the  East.  For  several  years  he  had  been  gathering 
material  for  a  book  on  friendship, — gathering  it  from 
his  own  endeavors  to  be  a  friend,  and  from  stories  of 
friendship  in  the  history  and  literature  of  all  ages  and 
lands.  In  traversing  the  world-field  for  illustrations 
of  the  principles  of  true  friendship,  he  began  to 
find  curious — and,  as  it  seemed  to  him,  highly  sig- 
nificant— facts  concerning  "  the  primitive  rite  of  cove- 
nanting by  the  inter-transfusion  of  blood."  He  had 
seen  traces  of  that  rite  in  variations  of  form  in  the 
East,  and  the  subject  began  to  lay  hold  upon  him,  to 
the  exclusion  of  further  work,  for  the  time  being,  on 
the  book  on  friendship.  It  was,  indeed,  nearly  eight 
years  from  that  time  until  he  issued  "  Friendship  the 


A  Writer  of  ''Marked  Books''  367 


Master  Passion,"  which  he  re-wrote  again  and  again 
almost  in  its  entirety  before  he  allowed  it  to  be  pub- 
lished. 

While  tracking  through  the  literature  of  ethnology 
the  manifestations  of  the  rite  of  blood-covenanting, 
Dr.  Trumbull,  late  in  the  winter  of  1885.  was  invited 
by  Professor  W.  R.  Harper,  later  President  Harper 
of  Chicago,  to  deliver  a  series  of  lectures  before  the 
Summer  School  of  Hebrew  held  irr  the  Episcopal 
Divinity  School  in  Philadelphia.  He  decided  to 
make  that  primitive  rite  the  subject  of  his  lectures, 
and  these  he  delivered  in  June  of  that  year.  He 
showed  that  in  the  thought  of  primitive  peoples  "  the 
blood  is  the  life ;  that  the  heart,  as  the  blood-fountain, 
is  the  very  soul  of  every  personality ;  that  blood- 
transfer  is  soul-transfer;  that  blood  sharing,  human, 
or  divine-human  secures  an  inter-union  of  natures ; 
and  that  a  union  of  the  human  nature  with  the  divine 
is  the  highest  ultimate  attainment  reached  out  after 
by  the  most  primitive,  as  well  as  by  the  most  enlight- 
ened, mind  of  humanity." 

With  the  same  thoroughness  and  sweeping,  yet 
minute,  examination  of  illuminating  literature,  and 
with  the  same  keen  insight  which  he  showed  in 
*'  Kadesh-barnea,"  Dr.  Trumbull  set  forth  the  forms 
and  meanings  of  the  rite  ;  in  ancient  Egypt,  in  an- 
cient Canaan,  in  ancient  Mexico ;  in  Modern  Turkey, 
Russia,  India,  Africa,  Asia,  America,  north  and  south 
in  Europe,  and  in  Oceanica.  Naturally,  the  climax 
of  this  closely  systematic  and  marvelously  rich  assem- 
bling and  study  of  previously  uncollated  facts  is  in 
the  light  thus  thrown  on  the  significance  of  the 


368  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


Atonement.  "  In  process  of  time,"  wrote  Dr.  Trum- 
bull, "  the  hour  drew  nigh  that  the  true  cov^enant  of 
blood  between  God  and  man  should  be  consummated 
finally,  in  its  perfectness.  The  period  chosen  was  the 
passover-feast — the  feast  observed  by  the  Jews  in 
commemoration  of  that  blood-covenanting  occasion 
in  Egypt,  when  God  evidenced  anew  his  fidelity  to 
his  promises  to  the  seed  of  Abraham,  his  blood- 
covenanted  friend.  .  .  .  Here  [in  the  Last  Supper]  was 
the  covenant  of  blood  ;  here  was  the  communion 
feast,  in  partaking  of  the  flesh  of  the  fitting  and 
accepted  sacrifice ; — toward  which  all  rite  and  sym- 
bol, and  all  heart  yearning  and  inspired  prophecy, 
had  pointed,  in  all  the  ages.  Here  was  the  reaHza- 
tion  of  promise  and  hope  and  longing,  in  man's  possi- 
bility of  inter-union  with  God  through  a  common 
life — which  is  oneness  of  blood ;  and  in  man's  inter- 
communion with  God,  through  participation  in  the 
blessings  of  a  common  table.  .  .  . 

"  But  a  covenant  of  blood,  a  covenant  to  give  one's 
blood,  one's  life,  for  another,  cannot  be  consummated 
without  the  death  of  the  covenanter.  .  .  .  The  promise 
of  the  covenanting  cup  at  the  covenanting  feast, 
was  made  good  on  Calvary.  The  pierced  hands  and 
feet  of  the  Divine  Friend  yielded  their  life-giving 
streams.  .  .  . 

"  It  is  the  same  in  the  New  Covenant,  as  it  was  in 
the  Old.  Atonement,  salvation,  rescue,  redemption, 
is  by  the  blood,  the  life,  of  Christ ;  not  by  his  death 
as  such ;  not  by  his  broken  body  in  itself;  but  by 
that  blood  which  was  given  at  the  inevitable  cost  of 
his  broken  body  and  of  his  death.  .  .  .  The  old  life 


A  Writer  of  ''Marked  Books''  369 


must  be  purged  out,  by  the  incoming  of  a  new  life; 
of  such  a  life  as  only  the  Son  of  God  can  supply." 

But  no  brief  epitome  of  Dr.  Trumbull's  study  of 
the  atonement  in  the  light  of  the  blood-covenant  can 
convey  any  adequate  impression  of  the  cumulative 
exaltation  of  spirit  or  of  the  elevation  and  spiritualiz- 
ing of  his  thought  as  he  draws  closer  and  closer  to 
the  holy  of  hohes  wherein  is  the  effulgence  of  divine 
compassion  in  the  new  covenant  in  His  blood. 

"  The  Blood  Covenant "  was  written  in  about  three 
months,  while  Dr.  Trumbull  was  writing  every  week 
for  his  paper  his  deeply  spiritual  and  very  practical 
editorials,  his  lesson  articles,  and  his  searching  an- 
swers to  correspondents  under  the  title  of  Notes  on 
Open  Letters."  But  no  hurry  was  evident  in  the 
book.  The  American  Hebrew  said  of  it :  "  This  is 
a  most  important  study  in  biblical  archeology,  and 
manifests  a  spirit  of  research  which  was  once  distinc- 
tively German,  but  which  has  within  recent  years 
found  domicile  in  America.  .  .  ,  There  is  something 
veritably  portentous  in  the  thorough  manner  in  which 
he  masses  the  widely  scattered  facts  concerning  the 
significance  of  blood-covenanting  among  various  peo- 
ples." The  Old  Testament  Student,  of  which  Pro- 
fessor Harper  was  the  editor,  called  it  "a  marvel  of 
research,  considering  that  the  field  it  covers  is  hith- 
erto unexplored,"  and  went  on  to  say  that  "  this 
material  is  handled  with  consummate  scientific  skill." 

Men  as  widely  apart  theologically  as  William  Henry 
Green  of  Princeton  and  Charles  A.  Briggs  of  Union 
Seminary  were  deeply  impressed  with  the  book  and 
its  conclusions.    Dr.  Green  called  it  "as  suggestive 


3/0  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


and  instructive  as  it  is  entertaining."  Dr.  Briggs 
characterized  it  as  "worthy  of  the  study  of  all  stu- 
dents of  religion,"  and  thanked  the  author  for  '^this 
fruit  of  vast  labor  and  persevering  research."  Godet 
of  Switzerland  termed  it  *'a  study  completely  new," 
and  was  "astonished  at  the  mass  of  facts"  which 
were  brought  together.  Cunningham  Geikie  wrote  : 
"Allow  me  to  express  my  admiration  at  the  research 
you  display  on  every  page  ;  at  the  wide  induction  on 
which  you  rest  your  conclusions  ;  and  on  the  most 
striking  results  to  which  these  conclusions  point." 
So,  on  both  sides  of  the  ocean  "The  Blood  Cove- 
nant" was  received  by  men  of  diverse  schools  of 
thought  with  frank  enthusiasm  as  a  "marked  book," 
as  The  [London]  Expositor  aptly  called  it. 

With  his  widening  horizon  in  the  field  of  biblical 
research,  Trumbull  increasingly  strove  to  render  The 
Sunday  School  Times  an  indispensable  means  of  com- 
munication between  the  savants  in  that  field,  and  the 
more  intelligent  Bible  studying  public.  He  must  have 
on  his  editorial  staff  a  thorough  orientalist  Through 
Professor  Franz  Delitzsch  of  Leipzig,  he  learned  of 
young  Herman  V.  Hilprecht,  then  twenty-six  years 
old,  a  pupil  of  Delitzsch's,  who  had  gone  in  the 
autumn  of  1885  to  Erlangen,  as  Repetenty  succeeding 
the  assyriologist  Dr.  Wilhelm  Lotz.  By  an  exchange 
of  cable  messages  Dr.  Trumbull  learned  that  Hil- 
precht would  consider  the  call  if  he  could  have  an 
opportunity  to  do  assyriological  work  in  the  Univer- 
sity of  Pennsylvania.  Then  Dr.  Trumbull,  intent  upon 
his  purpose,  presented  to  Dr.  William  Pepper,  Provost 
of  the  University,  the  opportunity  which  was  before 


A  Writer  of  ''Marked  Books'"  2>7^ 


that  institution.  An  arrangement  was  promptly  made, 
in  which  Trumbull  shared  as  a  liberal  contributor,  and 
Hilprecht  received  a  cable  informing  him  of  the  assured 
University  position.  Notwithstanding  the  immediate 
possibility  of  a  professorship  at  Erlangen,  in  less  than  a 
week  he  was  on  his  way  to  Philadelphia,  where  he  took 
up  his  editorial  work  in  June,  1886,  and  his  University 
work  in  the  autumn.  Thus  Dr.  Hilprecht  became  the 
Research  Editor  of  The  Sunday  School  Times,  and  be- 
gan his  great  work  for  the  University  of  Pennsylvania. 

The  imagination  pictures  the  author  of  such  a  book 
as  "The  Blood  Covenant"  35  a  toiling  recluse,  a  man 
of  sober  intentness,  moving  in  a  brown  study  from 
one  library  shelf  to  another  in  a  room  all  redolent 
with  the  odor  of  books.  Copious  foot-notes  and 
library  half-lights  are  surely  inseparable  companions. 
But  Dr.  Trumbull  had  the  foot-notes  without  the  half- 
lights.  He  wrote  Kadesh-barnea  "  and  ''Teaching 
and  Teachers,"  *'The  Blood  Covenant,"  and  all  his 
books,  without  any  of  those  cherished  literary  con- 
veniences which  clog  the  energy  and  please  the  fancy 
of  so  many  writers.  He  wrote  at  a  flat-topped  desk 
in  his  editorial  office,  with  all  his  assistants  about  him, 
no  partition  of  any  sort  shutting  him  away  from  their 
cross-fire  of  questions  to  each  other,  or  from  their 
sometimes  lively  discussions.  His  windows  overlooked 
a  busy  city  street ;  he  was  accessible  to  all,  rarely  den)'- 
ing  himself  to  any  one  ;  he  was  the  clearing-house  for 
office  problems  as  they  arose,  turning  in  his  quick, 
intense  way  from  one'  duty  to  another,  striking  in 
upon  office  discussions  with  his  glancing  wit  and  his 
sudden  thrusts  to  the  vcr}-  heart  of  a  subject. 


372  Heriry  Clay  Trttmbull 


His  home-coming  in  the  evening  was  not  into  the 
hush  of  a  scholarly  aloofness,  but  into  the  play  of 
children's  conversation,  into  the  light  and  good- cheer 
of  as  charming  a  household  as  the  most  domestic  of 
men  could  desire.  His  home  wels  the  center  for  a 
delightful  group  of  young  people.  Into  the  evening 
games  and  musicales  of  these  young  folks  Mrs.  Trum- 
bull would  enter  as  a  participant.  And  while  the 
happy  little  crowd  was  enjoying  itself  in  its  own  way 
Dr.  Trumbull  would  sit  in  his  library,  a  small  room 
between  the  dining-room  and  drawing-room,  and  there, 
with  reference  books  near  him  on  the  floor,  and  the 
conversation,  the  laughter,  the  music,  and  the  games 
of  his  children  and  their  friends  flowing  all  about  him, 
he  would  write  with  his  manuscript  on  a  portfolio  rest- 
ing on  his  knee.  There  he  worked  out  with  mai-velous 
concentration  the  close  argument  of  "Kadesh-barnea," 
the  systematic,  pungent,  compact  sentences  of  ''Teach- 
ing and  Teachers,"  and  the  scholarly  assemblings  and 
deductions  of  "The  Blood  Covenant."  He  was  en- 
tirely undisturbed  by  the  sounds  almost  at  his  elbow, 
but  he  was  not  oblivious  to  them.  For  when  any  wit 
flashed  out  in  the  group  he  would  laugh  with  the  rest, 
and,  calling  out  in  his  cheery  voice,  he  would  cry, 
*'  Good  !  good  !  By  the  way,  have  you  heard  of  " — 
and  then  would  follow  one  of  his  inimitably  good 
stories.  He  seemed  to  have  a  distinctly  twofold 
mentality,  capable  of  attention  to  two  things  at  the 
same  time  without  detriment  to  either.  And  while 
he  became  a  scholar  of  distinction,  he  never  ceased 
indeed  to  be  a  man. 


HIS  MINISTRY  TO  INDIVIDUALS 


Unless  a  man  is  ready  to  work  for  souls  it  may 
well  be  questioned  whether  he  himself  is  a  saved 
sinner.  He  who  wants  just  enough  religion  to 
save  himself,  is  not  likely  to  get  even  that  much. 

Interruptions  in  our  work  are  important  in 
their  place,  yet  we  are  apt  to  be  impatient  of 
them.  When  we  are  absorbed  in  some  occupa- 
tion in  the  line  of  duty  or  of  profitable  pleasure, 
it  is  annoying  to  be  called  away  to  attend  to 
some  person  in  whom  we  have  little  interest, 
but  who  seeks  our  sympathy  or  help  in  his  work 
or  needs.  Yet  when  the  interruption  is  not  of 
our  choosing,  and  one  that  cannot  properly  be 
evaded  by  us,  it  is  clearly  a  providential  order- 
ing, and  we  are  to  accept  it  as  designed  for  our 
goo3,  and  as  being  really  better  for  us  than  the 
privilege  of  uninterrupted  effort.  There  may  be 
opportunities  for  interruption  which  we  ought 
not  to  accept  ;  but  if  we  are  interrupted  in  spite 
of  ourselves,  we  may  understand  that  God  knows 
what  we  need  better  than  we  know. — From  edi- 
torial paragraphs. 


CHAPTER  XXIII 


HIS  MINISTRY  TO  INDIVIDUALS 

In  his  eagerness  to  get  on  with  his  work,  Dr.  Trum- 
bull had  somehow  overlooked  the  "  dead-line"  of  his 
fiftieth  birthday.  He  was  now,  in  the  decade  begin- 
ning with  1 888,  not  many  years  from  that  sunset  hour 
when  a  man's  friends  wax  lenient  toward  the  foibles 
of  reminiscence  and  rheumatism.  But  Dr.  Trumbull 
was  shockingly  irregular  as  an  exponent  of  the  dwin- 
dling life.  You  could  scarcely  hold  him  to  conversa- 
tion about  his  books  already  published.  He  would 
respond  with  frank  pleasure  to  any  appreciative  word 
concerning  any  work  of  his,  but  his  thought  was  so 
bent  upon  what  he  was  planning  to  do,  that  he  would 
turn  the  conversation  as  quickly  as  he  could  from  the 
old  to  the  new. 

When  he  had  finished  a  book,  and  it  was  fairly  in 
his  publisher's  hands,  he  lost  no  time  in  half-reverent 
and  over-fond  contemplation  of  his  achievement,  but 
seized  upon  the  next  real  work  to  be  done,  and  got 
at  it. 

"  How  many  copies  of  the  book  have  been  sold, 
Doctor  ?  "  asked  an  acquaintance,  concerning  one  of 
his  more  popular  volumes. 

"  Oh,  I  don't  know,"  replied  Trumbull,  as  if  the  ques- 
tion would  not  have  occurred  to  him.    "  When  I  fin- 

375 


376  Heiu^y  Clay  Trumbull 


ished  the  writing  of  that  book  my  work  on  it  was  done. 
I'm  more  interested  now  in  the  one  I'm  writing  now." 
And  forthwith  he  would  launch  into  an  account  of  it. 

It  was  Dr.  Trumbull's  habit  to  walk  nearly  every 
morning,  with  his  son-in-law  and  partner,  John  D. 
Wattles,  to  their  office,  some  three  miles  distant  from 
his  home  in  West  Philadelphia.  He  was  a  familiar 
and  notable  figure  on  Chestnut  Street  in  the  early 
hours  of  the  business  day,  as  he  strode  energetically 
along  with  Mr.  Wattles,  whose  athletic  frame  was 
often  taxed  to  keep  time  with  the  driving  pace  of  the 
man  of  nearly  twice  his  age. 

Sometimes  he  would  ride,  but  one  never  could  tell 
how  far  he  would  go  toward  his  office  by  such  means. 
James  B.  Ely,  the  evangelistic  leader  and  organizer, 
was,  in  the  eighties,  a  newcomer  in  Philadelphia.  He 
had  met  Dr.  Trumbull,  but  hardly  supposed  that  the 
Doctor  would  know  him.  Greatly  to  his  surprise,  he 
saw  him  leap  from  the  platform  of  a  street-car  one 
morning,  and  hasten  to  the  pavement,  where  he 
joined  young  Ely  in  a  walk  of  a  mile  or  more, — a 
courtesy  which  Ely  never  forgot. 

While  riding  on  the  street-cars,  Trumbull  was  alert 
to  yield  his  place  to  any  woman  or  to  an  older  man. 
No  newspaper  hid  his  duty  from  him.  He  was  often 
weary  in  mind  and  body ;  often,  as  he  went  to  his 
office,  really  ill  enough  to  have  remained  at  home ; 
but  no  matter, — he  would  never  keep  his  seat  while 
a  woman  was  standing,  so  long  as  Jie  could  stand. 
Even  in  his  later  years  of  physical  disability  he  would 
make  the  attempt,  smiling  apologetically  when  he 
found  he  could  not  stand. 


Ministry  to  Individuals 


377 


A  large  share  of  Dr.  Trumbull's  most  abiding  work 
was  done  in  the  last  fifteen  years  of  his  life.  Early 
in  1888,  when  he  was  in  his  fifty-eighth  year,  he  was 
invited  by  the  faculty  of  the  Yale  Divinity  School  to 
deliver  the  Lyman  Beecher  lectures  for  that  year  on 
the  Sunday-school.  The  preface  of  the  book  con- 
taining these  lectures  was  dated  September  i,  1888, 
just  thirty  years  from  the  time  of  his  entrance  into 
the  field  work  of  the  Sunday-school. 

At  the  time  of  entering  upon  Sunday-school  work 
he  had  been  met  by  "  the  objection,  that  the  Sunday- 
school  is  in  rivalry  with  the  mission  of  the  family  on 
the  one  hand,  and  of  the  ministry  on  the  other,  and 
that  at  the  best  it  is  a  poor  substitute  for  either."  If 
there  was  "  a  better  agency  available  in  the  plans  of 
God  "  he  wanted  to  change  his  own  plans  accordingly. 
So  he  gathered  from  many  sources  treasures  of  histori- 
cal material  for  his  own  enlightenment,  coming  ever 
to  securer  foothold  in  the  path  to  which  he  had  been 
called.  All  this  material  Trumbull  had  laid  aside 
when  he  came  to  The  Sunday  School  Times,  suppos- 
ing that  he  would  have  no  opportunity  to  put  it  into 
permanent  form.  The  invitation  of  the  Yale  Divinity 
School  gave  him  his  opportunity. 

**  Yale  Lectures  on  the  Sunday  School  "  is  in  its  own 
sphere  as  thorough  a  study  as  "  Kadesh-barnea  "  or 
"  The  Blood  Covenant "  in  theirs.  It  pursues  Dr. 
Trumbull's  far-reaching  methods  of  research,  tracing 
the  course  of  religious  catechetical  education  from  pa- 
triarchal times  down  through  Jewish  rabbinical  lore, 
apostolic  practises,  practises  in  the  ever  widening 
circle  of  Christian  peoples  the  world  over,  and  into 


378  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


its  modern  revival  in  the  eighteenth  century,  and  its 
still  more  modern  expansion  in  our  own  times.  But 
the  book  is  not  history  alone.  It  would  be  incom- 
plete indeed  without  its  close  examination  of  the 
Sunday-school  of  to-day  in  its  relations  to  the  family, 
in  its  membership  and  management,  its  teachers  and 
their  training,  and  many  another  phase  of  the  institu- 
tion at  work.  Combining  thus  a  thorough  historical 
study  with  an  examination  of  Sunday-school  methods 
of  our  own  time,  "  Yale  Lectures  "  still  stands  as  the 
authoritative  work  on  the  Sunday-school  as  an  insti- 
tution. 

These  were  years,  too,  of  unceasing  activity  in  indi- 
vidual work  for  Christ.  He  was  never  pastor  of  a 
church,  but  he  was  constantly  doing  the  work  of  a 
shepherd.  One  might  often  see  him,  on  his  errands 
of  comfort  and  cheer,  hurrying  along  the  streets  on 
cold  winter  nights,  in  the  driving  snow,  enveloped 
in  his  long  ulster  and  with  his  wide-brimmed  chap- 
lain's hat  pulled  down  over  his  eyes.  He  always  had 
time  for  these  things.  The  individual  was  always 
foremost  in  his  thought.  His  day  was  no  longer  than 
that  of  any  other,  and  yet  he  packed  two  days'  work 
into  it,  and  plenty  of  sleep. 

He  called,  one  day,  on  a  man  whose  wife  was 
dying.  He  had  hardly  known  the  man  upon  whom 
he  was  calling.  He  sent  up  his  card.  It  was  read 
without  recognition  of  the  personality  back  of  the 
name,  and  the  grief-stricken  husband  left  his  wife's 
bedside  and  went  downstairs.  He  sat  beside  Dr. 
Trumbull  on  the  sofa,  and  neither  said  a  word  for 
some  moments.    Then  Dr.  Trumbull  reached  out  his 


Ministry  to  Individuals  379 


hand,  and  rested  it  upon  the  knee  of  his  new  ac- 
quaintance.   "  Mr.  ,"  he  said,  "  I  don't  know  you 

very  well,  but  I  know  what  you  are  passing  through." 
That  was  all.  He  went  quietly  out.  But  he  had 
touched  another  soul  with  his  loving  sympathy. 

Even  when  preaching  from  the  pulpit,  as  it  was  his 
privilege  often  to  do,  he  would  try  to  find  one  person 
in  the  congregation  who  seemed  especially  interested 
in  what  he  was  saying,  for  unless  he  could  know  that 
he  was  reaching  one,  he  had  small  hope  of  touching 
many. 

On  one  occasion  he  saw  a  man  very  prominent 
in  the  community  showing  special  signs  of  interest 
in  the  sermon.  Dr.  Trumbull  felt  at  the  time  that  he 
must  follow  up  that  one  man.  He  knew  him  slightly, 
enough  to  know  that  he  was  not  a  member  of  the 
church,  but  he  had  never  talked  with  him  on  the  sub- 
ject of  personal  religion.  Without  waiting  for  any 
further  opening,  Trumbull  called  on  him  that  day, 
and  told  him  he  had  noticed  his  interest  in  one  of  the 
illustrative  incidents  in  that  sermon.  The  listener 
said  he  had  indeed  been  much  impressed  by  the 
story.  Then  the  two  had  a  free  and  friendly  talk  on 
the  acceptance  of  Christ's  salvation,  and  before  long 
the  man  who  had  been  so  promptly  and  tactfully  fol- 
lowed up,  was  himself  a  power  in  Christ's  service  in 
that  community. 

Dr.  Trumbull's  Bible  class  was  a  watch  tower  for 
individual  work.  His  knowledge  of  teaching  pre- 
vented him  from  adopting  the  lecture  habit.  His 
class  was  a  place  for  close  thought  and  open  discus- 
sion.   All  were  free  to  take  part,  and  very  many  did. 


380  Henry  Clay  Trimibttll 


Visitors  to  the  city  who  hked  Christian  philosophy, 
highly  seasoned  with  keen  repartee  and  downright 
hard  study,  with  floods  of  light  from  the  Orient  on  the 
Bible,  could  always  find  an  abundance  in  that  class. 
Yet  the  problems  of  one  person  among  the  fifty  or 
seventy-five  persons  in  the  room  were  compelling  in 
their  grip  on  Dr.  Trumbull.  He  would  study  faces, 
weigh  questions,  give  answers,  with  the  thought  that 
the  hour  might  reveal  some  one  to  whom  he  could 
carry  a  message  of  hope  and  of  service. 

A  man  whom  Dr.  Trumbull  had  known  years 
before  came  with  his  wife  to  the  class.  The  leader 
knew  that  they  were  not  members  of  the  church. 
That  of  itself  was  a  call  to  him,  and  he  visited  them 
one  week-day  afternoon,  a  considerable  distance  from 
his  home.  He  plainly  told  them  why  he  had  come, 
and  how  deeply  interested  he  was  in  them.  And 
when  he  urged  that  they  should  commit  themselves 
to  Christ,  they  knelt  with  him,  and  came  to  a  decision 
in  that  hour. 

Dr.  Trumbull  never  had  to  look  far  for  such  oppor- 
tunities, nor  does  any  one.  At  an  after-meeting  in  the 
church  which  he  attended  he  was  asked  to  offer  the 
closing  prayer.  By  his  side  was  a  man  whom  he  had 
known  by  sight,  but  of  whose  religious  views  he  knew 
nothing.  He  realized  that  praying  in  that  man's 
presence  was  not  enough.  At  the  close  of  the  meet- 
ing he  turned  to  him,  introduced  himself,  and  ex- 
pressed the  hope  that  he  shared  with  him  the  faith 
that  was  dearer  than  life. 

"  I  have  no  peace  of  mind,  nor  do  I  know  how  to 
find  it,"  answered  the  other  instantly.   "I  have  several 


M mis  try  to  Individuals  381 


times  thought  of  calling  on  you  to  see  if  you  could 
give  me  help." 

"If  I  can  help  you  spiritually,"  said  Trumbull,  ''I 
will  gladly  call  on  you.  That's  a  work  I'm  always 
ready  to  do.  If  you'll  tell  me  when  I  can  see  you, 
I'm  at  your  service." 

On  the  day  following,  and  again  and  again  after 
that,  the  two  were  in  conversation  on  the  theme  of 
themes,  until  from  pitiful  confusion  of  mind  the 
troubled  soul  was  brought  to  see  how  simple  a  thing 
it  is  to  trust  Christ.  Then  he  did  trust  him ;  he  be- 
came a  close  student  of  the  Bible,  and  was  known  in 
his  church  as  a  helper  of  other  Bible  students. 

For  this  work  Dr.  Trumbull  always  had  time,  no 
matter  what  other  duties  pressed  upon  him.  It  was 
not  a  work  that  lay  dimly  in  the  background  of  his 
thought,  but  it  was  first  and  foremost,  fronting  him  as 
a  life-mission  day  by  day.  Yet  it  was  never  easy  for 
him.  He  nev^er  lost  a  certain  degree  of  reluctance  in 
approaching  others  on  the  theme  that  was  nearest  his 
heart.  He  believed,  moreover,  that  one  ought  not  to 
expect  to  do  such  work  easily. 

"If  words  for  Christ  to  an  individual,"  he  wrote, 
"are  most  effective  in  the  winning  of  souls,  why  are 
they  not  more  commonly  spoken  by  those  who  love 
Christ  and  love  souls  ?  Is  it  because  persons  do  not 
know  this  truth,  or  that  they  are  incompetent  to 
speak  the  needed  words  ;  or  do  they  simply  neglect 
the  duty  which  they  recognize  as  a  duty,  and  which 
they  are  amply  competent  to  perform  ?  Probably  no 
one  answer  would  meet  every  case.  Different  an- 
swers would  be  given  in  different  cases. 


382  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


**  We  do  know  that  evil  opposes  good  in  the  uni- 
verse. Over  against  Ormuzd  is  Ahriman  in  the 
Zoroastrian  religion.  Over  against  God  is  Satan  in 
the  Bible  teachings.  It  would  seem  that  Satan 
desires  to  prevent  any  believer  from  speaking  a 
word  to  an  individual  for  Christ  even  while  he  does 
not  expect  to  prevent  all  preaching  to  a  whole  con- 
gregation. His  favorite  argument  with  a  believer  is 
that  just  now  is  not  a  good  time  to  speak  on  the  sub- 
ject. The  lover  of  Christ  and  of  souls  is  told  that 
he  will  harm  the  cause  he  loves  by  introducing  the 
theme  of  themes  just  now.  Will  not  every  disciple 
who  has  had  experience  in  this  line  of  effort  admit 
that  he  has  frequently  found  this  to  be  the  case  ? 

Out  of  my  own  experience  I  can  bear  testimony 
to  this.  From  nearly  half  a  century  of  such  prac- 
tise, as  I  have  had  opportunity  day  by  day,  I  can 
say  that  I  have  spoken  with  thousands  upon  thousands 
on  the  subject  of  their  spiritual  welfare.  Yet  so  far 
from  my  becoming  accustomed  to  this  matter,  so  that 
I  can  take  hold  of  it  as  a  matter  of  course,  I  find  it 
as  difficult  to  speak  about  at  the  end  of  these  years 
as  at  the  beginning.  Never  to  the  present  day  can 
I  speak  to  a  single  soul  for  Christ  without  being 
reminded  by  Satan  that  I  am  in  danger  of  harming 
the  cause  by  introducing  it  just  now.  If  there  is  one 
thing  that  Satan  is  sensitive  about,  it  is  the  danger  of 
a  Christian's  harming  the  cause  he  loves  by  speaking 
of  Christ  to  a  needy  soul.  He  has  more  than  once  or 
twice  or  thrice  kept  me  from  speaking  on  the  subject 
by  his  sensitive,  pious  caution,  and  he  has  tried  a 
thousand  times  to  do  so.    Therefore,  my  experience 


Ministry  to  Individuals 


383 


leads  me  to  suppose  that  he  is  urging  other  persons 
to  try  any  method  for  souls  except  the  best  one." 

There  are  those  who  vaguely  long  to  be  of  service 
in  winning  individuals  to  Christ.  Henry  Clay  Trum- 
bull got  at  it  in  faith  and  prayer.  The  difference  be- 
tween trying  and  not  trying  in  that  service  is  the 
difference  between  duty-doing  and  duty-shirking. 

In  the  summer  of  1888,  while  he  was  at  work  on 
the  revision  and  completion  of  the  pages  of  "  Yale 
Lectures,"  Dr.  Trumbull  attended  the  Third  World's 
Student  Conference  at  Northfield.  He  was  there,  not 
because  of  the  many  students,  but  principally  because 
of  one  in  whom  he  was  deeply  interested.  He  preached 
the  opening  sermon  of  the  Conference,  taking  as  his 
subject  "  Moral  Color  Blindness  "  and  as  his  text  Luke 
II  :  35  :  "  Look  therefore  whether  the  light  that  is  in 
thee  be  not  darkness."  Again,  he  preached  a  sermon 
on  "  The  Ten  Commandments  as  a  Covenant  of  Love," 
in  which  he  pressed  the  truth  that  the  Decalogue  is  not 
a  series  of  arbitrary  commands,  but  rather  "  a  loving 
covenant  that  binds  two  parties  to  each  other  in  mutual 
affection  and  fidelity,  ...  a  compact  of  union,  having 
its  statement  of  promises  on  the  one  hand  and  of  re- 
sponsibilities on  the  other," 

When  Dr.  Trumbull  was  about  to  leave  for  home, 
Mr.  Moody  urged  him  to  stay  another  day  and  ad- 
dress the  students  again.  Dr.  Trumbull  answered 
that  he  thought  he  was  not  needed.  On  what  he 
had  expected  to  be  his  last  evening  there,  while  he 
sat  with  Mr.  Moody  on  the  platform,  he  heard  G.  B. 
Studd,  the  famous  Cambridge  cricketer,  tell  an  inci- 
dent of  individual  work  for  souls.     That  address 


384  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


changed  Dr.  Trumbull's  plans  instantly.  He  told 
Mr.  Moody  that  he  would  remain  another  day,  and 
would  speak  on  *'  Personal  Work  for  Souls." 

Until  then  Dr.  Trumbull  had  never  spoken  publicly 
on  that  theme,  so  far  as  he  could  remember.  When 
he  rose  to  speak  on  the  next  evening  he  told  how  he 
had  been  won  to  Christ  by  a  letter  from  a  friend,  and 
of  his  own  definite  life  purpose  then  formed.  He 
told  of  experience  after  experience  in  winning  indi- 
viduals to  Christ,  and  as  he  closed  his  address  the 
students  started  to  applaud  vigorously.  At  once 
Mr.  Moody  was  on  his  feet,  with  outstretched  hands, 
calling  for  silence. 

"  Hush  !  This  is  no  matter  for  applause.  It's  too 
solemn  a  truth.  Brother  Studd,  will  you  lead  us  in 
prayer  ?  " 

After  the  service  the  delegation  leaders  called  meet- 
ings to  take  action  as  to  their  own  attitude  toward 
individual  work  for  Christ  among  individuals,  while 
Studd  and  other  Cambridge  men  sought  Dr.  Trum- 
bull's aid  in  behalf  of  one  of  their  fellow-students 
who  had  come  to  Northfield  with  them.  He  was  a 
man  of  great  influence  who  would  count  for  much, 
either  for  good  or  for  evil;  but  as  yet  he  had  little 
interest  in  what  Northfield  stood  for. 

"  My  dear  friends,"  said  Dr.  Trumbull,  "  I  cannoi 
help  you.  I  have  no  special  power  in  winning  souls. 
I  have  merely  told  you  this  evening  of  my  habit  of 
speaking  a  word  for  Christ  to  those  whom  God  puts 
under  my  influence,  or  for  whom,  in  some  way,  he 
gives  me  a  responsibility.  This  young  man  is  not 
one  of  that  sort.    I  have  merely  met  him  here  as  one 


Ministry  to  Individuals 


385 


with  you.  All  I  can  say  is  that  I  will  have  your  re- 
quest in  mind,  and  if  I  meet  him  so  that  I  have  a  right 
to  speak  to  him  I  will  not  fail  to  use  the  opportunity." 

It  was  nearly  midnight  when  Dr.  Trumbull  went  up 
the  steps  of  the  hall  in  which  was  his  room.  A  young 
man  standing  in  the  shadow  moved  forward  to  meet 
him.  It  was  the  Cambridge  student  for  whom  his 
companions  were  at  that  hour  praying. 

"  Dr.  Trumbull,"  he  said,  "  I  was  over  in  the  audi- 
torium, and  I  heard  your  address ;  and  now  I  want 
your  help.  When  are  you  going  away  ?  When  can 
I  have  a  talk  with  you  ?  " 

Though  the  doctor  was  quite  ready  to  talk  that 
night,  it  was  arranged  that  they  should  confer  in  the 
morning ;  and  under  the  trees  they  met,  as  so  many 
have  met  since  then,  for  a  talk  which  brought  the  two 
men  to  their  knees  in  the  open  air,  as  they  together 
"  sought  God's  blessing  on  the  decision  then  made 
and  the  new  life  course  then  entered  on."  Was  it 
strange  that  the  younger  man  a  few  weeks  later  wrote 
gratefully  of  the  interview  under  the  trees  in  what  he 
so  truthfully  called  that  "  heaven  on  earth  "  ? 

***** 

This  was  but  the  beginning  of  Henry  Clay  Trum- 
bull's Northfield  ministry,  and  the  end  is  not  yet. 
His  bearing  and  his  words  laid  hold  upon  students 
He  addressed  the  New  England  Students'  Conference 
in  Middletown  on  the  same  theme  that  had  made 
such  an  impression ;  he  spoke  in  Princeton  at  the 
invitation  of  T.  H.  Powers  Sailer,  then  an  under- 
graduate, and  often  at  Yale,  where  his  son  was  a 
student.    Then,  in  1893,  when  Moody  was  in  Europe, 


386  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


and  John  R.  Mott  was  in  charge  of  the  Student  Con- 
ference in  Northfield,  he  spoke  there  again  on  per- 
sonal work.  Mr.  Moody  highly  valued  his  personal 
influence  over  students,  and  cherished  his  friendship 
in  frank  affection.  During  one  of  Trumbull's  North- 
field  visits,  Moody  asked  him  to  take  a  drive  before 
six  one  morning,  and  then  to  breakfast  with  Henry 
Drummond,  who  was  Moody's  guest. 

"  Moody  wanted  me  to  see  one  of  his  favorite 
drives,"  said  Dr.  Trumbull  in  describing  that  early 
morning  experience.  It  was  along  a  wooded  road. 
In  a  shaded  dell  we  stopped  to  hear  the  birds  sing 
and  the  brook  murmur  in  the  forest  on  the  right. 
Moody  spoke  softly  and  delightedly :  '  Isn't  that 
nice  ?    I  love  to  come  out  here  ! ' 

"  As  we  stopped  there  a  few  minutes  Moody  spoke 
of  Drummond  with  admiration  and  affection.  He 
told  of  Drummond's  kind  services  as  a  volunteer 
secretary  during  the  Moody  and  Sankey  first  cam- 
paign in  Scotland,  and  of  the  lovely  spirit  Drummond 

showed  in  it  all  *  I  tell  you,  Trumbull,  Drummond 

is  the  sweetest-spirited  Christian  I  ever  knew.'  " 

After  the  breakfast  and  after  the  morning  service, 
Drummond  asked  Trumbull  to  walk  with  him  while 
they  talked  of  Bushnell,  whom  Drummond  admired, 
and  of  whom  he  wanted  Trumbull  to  tell  him  more. 
At  length  their  conversation  turned  to  D.  L.  Moody. 
Drummond  finally  turned  to  his  companion,  saying 
with  great  earnestness : 

"  I  tell  you  what  it  is,  Trumbull,  Moody  is  the 
jsweetest-spirited  Christian  I  ever  knew." 

And  Trumbull  had  no  mind  to  contradict  him. 


Mi7iistry  to  Individuals  387 


One  afternoon  in  the  summer  of  1905  I  sat  in  a 
quiet  room  overlooking  the  field  where  the  Cam- 
bridge man  and  the  veteran  in  Christ's  service  won 
their  victory  together.  Facing  me  in  that  room,  with 
books  and  papers  all  about  him,  was  one  whom  Dr. 
Trumbull  loved  to  call  his  friend,  a  man  of  the 
younger  generation,  pouring  out  in  these  days  into 
the  lives  of  other  young  men  the  Northfield  spirit, 
giving  freely  of  himself  to  others  in  their  problems, 
even  as  he  in  his  turn  had  freely  received.  We  could 
not  be  together  long  without  speaking  of  Dr.  Trum- 
bull, for  Robert  E.  Speer  knew  him  and  loved  him, 
and  was  indeed  his  friend.  Each  of  them  rejoiced  in 
acknowledging  his  debt  to  the  other,  and  it  was  at 
Northfield  that  the  two  had  first  come  into  closest 
fellowship. 

I  do  not  know  which  one  of  us  first  spoke  the  name 
that  was  in  our  thought,  but  when  our  conversation 
turned  to  him,  Speer  looked  out  of  the  open  window 
and  over  the  hillside,  saying  in  his  vibrant,  tenderly 
earnest  way: 

*  Dr.  Trumbull, — what  influences  he  set  loose 
among  us  here  !  " 

It  seemed  enough  to  say.  The  hour  struck,  and 
we  parted,  for  men  were  waiting  for  Speer,  to  receive 
what  message  of  Christian  manhood  he  might  have 
for  them. 

At  twilight,  a  few  days  later,  a  young  woman  was 
speaking  to  a  company  of  girls  gathered  under  the 
pines  on  Round  Top,  the  Northfield  mount  of  de- 
cision. She  might  well  be  in  earnest,  for  her  father 
was  the  loved  evangelist  Whittle,  and  her  husband 


388  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


the  eldest  son  of  that  D.  L.  Moody  whose  grave  she 
could  see  in  the  sunset  light  on  the  summit  of  the 
little  hill  on  whose  slope  she  was  standing. 

"  I  shall  never  forget,"  Mrs.  Moody  was  saying, 
"  what  one  man  did  for  some  of  us  here  at  Northfield. 
I  mean  Dr.  Henry  Clay  Trumbull.  He  gathered  a 
few  of  us  girls  around  him,  and  told  us  of  the  work 
we  could  do  with  others  in  speaking  for  Christ.  As 
he  told  of  one  experience  after  another,  I  said  to 
myself,  '  There  is  something  every  one  can  do,  some- 
thing I  can  do !  '  And  I  have  never  ceased  to  be 
grateful  for  what  Dr.  Trumbull  said  to  us  that  day. 
It  is  a  work  all  of  us  can  do." 


A  PASSION  FOR  RIGHTNESS 


Minor  things  are  often  more  important  than 
greater  things  ;  and  lesser  things  need  attention 
before  larger  things.  A  speck  of  dust  is  a  very 
little  thing,  in  comparison  with  a  master-work  of 
the  intellect  ;  but  if  that  speck  of  dust  be  in  the 
eye  of  an  author,  it  is  more  important  for  that 
author  to  attend  just  now  to  that  little  atom  than 
to  begin  his  first  chapter  on  a  new  theory  of  the 
Cosmos.  An  individual  is  of  less  importance 
than  a  theory  of  education  ;  but  if  a  common- 
place individual  be  chairman  of  an  important 
committee  on  education,  that  common-place  in- 
dividual needs  attention  by  the  large-minded 
theorist,  before  an  issue  is  made  as  to  the  edu- 
cational schemes  which  he  would  press  into 
favor  through  that  committee.  A  little  doorway 
calls  for  effort  in  its  passing,  before  effort  is 
made  in  the  great  structure  beyond,  if  that 
doorway  be  the  one  available  entrance  to  that 
building.  The  first  thing  to  be  done  is  the 
thing  to  be  done  first,  however  small  it  be. — 
Aji  editorial  paragraph. 


CHAPTER  XXIV 


A  PASSION  FOR  RIGHTNESS 

One  day,  when  Trumbull  had  been  deeply  con- 
cerned over  a  seemingly  trivial  matter  in  connection 
with  his  editorial  work,  one  of  his  helpers  said  to 
him : 

"  Doctor,  can't  you  just  let  that  go,  and  stop  think- 
ing about  it?  It's  of  so  little  importance  that  it 
doesn't  really  seem  worth  the  trouble  you  are  taking 
about  it." 

**  I  can't  let  anything  go,"  answered  Trumbull,  with 
sudden  excitement.  "  I  never  could,  and  I  can't  now, 
and  I  don't  believe  I  ever  can.  It  isn't  in  me  to  be 
indifferent." 

How  true  that  was !  He  sometimes  appeared  to 
have  no  sense  of  proportion  in  the  attention  he  gave 
to  whatever  had  claim  upon  him.  A  duty  seemed 
neither  greater  nor  less  to  him,  for  every  duty  was 
great  enough  to  demand  all  his  being  in  the  doing  of 
it.  He  was  just  as  careful  to  have  his  pencil  sharp- 
pened  to  a  fine  point  as  he  was  to  make  a  fine  point 
in  writing  with  the  pencil.  Nothing  was  insignificant, 
nothing  trivial,  in  the  line  of  duty,  or  absorbing  interest. 

In  this  attitude  his  children,  too,  were  trained. 
Things  must  be  in  place.  A  broken  toy  in  the  thick 
of  childhood  days  was  a  rare  sight  in  that  house- 

391 


392  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


hold;  for  carefulness  was  taught  as  a  virtue,  and, 
moreover,  was  practised  in  exemplary  fulfilment  of 
the  restraining  grace  of  thoughtfulness. 

Was  it  an  echo  of  the  Stonington  days  that  the 
table  talk  should  have  been  so  admirably  designed  to 
sharpen  wit,  and  to  inform  the  mind  ?  The  father's 
editorials  were  read  at  the  table,  and  their  topics  dis- 
cussed. And  when  words  and  their  meanings  were 
in  question,  or  when  an  unfamiliar  name  in  history  or 
literature  came  into  the  conversation,  there  was  no 
vague  and  vapid,  "  We  must  look  that  up  sometime," 
but  a  quick  turning  then  and  there  to  the  dictionary 
shelves  close  by  the  table,  where  standard  reference 
works  stood  ever  on  duty.  Any  one  who  realizes 
how  much  is  lost  through  the  sheer  indolence  that 
prevents  one  from  opening  a  reference  work  to  get  at 
the  rights  of  a  matter  will  realize  how  Dr.  Trumbull's 
unwillingness  to  let  anything  go  could  contribute  to 
his  own  and  his  family's  accuracy  and  scope  of  knowl- 
edge. 

He  was  lunching  with  a  young  protege  of  his  in  the 
dining-room  of  a  tall  office-building.  From  where  he 
sat  he  could  see  through  a  window  the  corner  of  a 
near-by  structure  which  he  did  not  recognize.  Turn- 
ing quietly  to  his  companion,  he  asked : 

"  What  is  that  building  I  can  hardly  see  over 
there  ?  " 

I  don't  know,"  answered  the  other  unthinkingly. 
*'  I  cannot  see  it  from  where  I  sit." 

Then  get  up  and  go  where  you  can  see  it ! "  ex- 
claimed Trumbull,  his  eyes  snapping  with  sudden  ire 
at  the  complacency  of  one  whom  he  was  seeking  to 


A  Passion  for  Rightness 


393 


train.  It  is  needless  to  say  that  the  startled  young 
man  without  undue  loss  of  time  made  a  report  on 
that  building. 

In  every  detail  of  his  editorial  work  Trumbull  was 
extremely  particular.  "  Verify  "  was  the  office  watch- 
word. Mr.  Patterson  Du  Bois  relates  that  when  he 
first  joined  the  staff  of  The  Sunday  School  Times  he 
knew  nothing  about  editing,  and  naturally  he  had 
some  hesitation  in  attempting  to  criticize  the  editor's 
writings  at  any  point  He  did  not  know  then  that 
Dr.  Trumbull  courted  the  most  relentless  scrutiny  of 
every  sentence  written  by  himself  Therefore  when 
Mr.  Du  Bois  at  one  time  called  Dr.  Trumbull's  atten- 
tion to  a  possible  error  in  some  of  the  editor's  writ- 
ing already  in  press,  he  was  astonished  to  see  that 
Trumbull  was  greatly  disturbed. 

"  Du  Bois,"  he  said  with  that  positiveness  which 
was  so  characteristic,  if  you  should  let  me  say  a 
thing  that  you  believed  was  wrong  without  telling  me 
your  opinion,  you  would  be  culpable,  and  I  would 
hold  you  responsible." 

On  the  other  hand,  there  were  times  when  he  did 
not  wish  to  have  his  attention  called  to  mistakes  in 
his  paper.  Mr.  Henry  G.  Talmadge,  for  more  than 
fifteen  years — to  the  end  of  Dr.  Trumbull's  life — his 
untiring,  sympathetic,  ever-alert,  right-hand  helper  in 
the  editorial  rooms,  bears  Avitness  to  this. 

"  Dr.  Trumbull  impressed  me  as  a  great  teacher, 
and  my  fifteen  years  of  close  contact  with  him  served 
to  strengthen  this  conviction.  The  editorial  room 
was  a  veritable  *  Garfield  university,' — Dr.  Trumbull 
at  one  end  of  a  log  and  the  j'oung  men  at  the  other. 


394  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


When  *  editorial  day '  came,  we  all  dropped  our  work 
to  sit  at  the  feet  of  the  master,  and  paragraph  by  para- 
graph of  the  leader  was  read  to  us  as  it  was  completed 
by  his  pen,  and  everybody  in  the  circle  around  him — 
office  boy  and  all — was  expected  to  give  his  opinion 
on  the  subject  before  them.  In  this  way  I  learned 
many  a  life  lesson  from  Dr.  Trumbull.  One  of  these 
was  'The  Sin  of  Worrying.'  This  was  the  title  of 
an  editorial,  and  he  was  not  the  man  to  tolerate  worry. 
To  illustrate :  On  one  occasion  I  showed  him  a  mis- 
take I  discovered  in  a  copy  of  The  Sunday  School 
Times.  *  Is  it  too  late  to  make  the  correction  ? '  he 
inquired.  '  Yes,  sir.'  '  Mr.  Talmadge,  I  never  want 
a  mistake  in  the  paper  shown  me  if  it's  too  late  to 
make  a  change.'  Any  temptation  to  worry  over  a 
thing  past  remedy  was  never  encouraged  by  my  great 
leader." 

Careful  though  he  was  to  keep  out  mistakes,  he  was 
wisely  reluctant  to  have  himself  held  up  as  a  model 
of  accuracy.  To  a  Canadian  correspondent  he  wrote 
in  answer  to  a  criticism  : 

I  have  received  your  postal  card,  with  accompanying  marked 
copy  of  my  paper.  I  thank  you  for  your  attention  in  this  mat- 
ter, and  am  only  surprised  that  you  are  not  more  familiar  with 
my  facility  in  error-making.  I  presume  there  is  never  a  copy 
of  The  Sunday  School  Times  in  which  there  could  not  be 
found  some  error  of  mine  in  rhetoric  or  style.  I  should  hardly 
agree  with  you  in  calling  the  errors  you  note  "grammatical," 
as  they  are  rhetorical  errors,  and  noted  by  you  as  errors  be- 
cause of  your  evident  understanding  of  my  intention  in  the 
sentences  noted.  Two  of  them  are  mine,  and  one  is  in  the 
writing  of  one  of  the  most  careful  and  prominent  college  pro- 
fessors in  the  realm  of  literature  and  rhetoric. 


A  Passion  for  Rightness 


395 


I  endeavor  to  be  careful  in  this  matter,  but  I  think  it  is  quite 
likely  that  you  will  find  other  errors  in  the  same  line  in  my 
writing  hereafter  ;  as  I  am  not  likely  to  have  it  as  the  great  pur- 
pose of  my  writing  to  be  uniformly  accurate  in  such  matters, 
much  as  I  desire  to  be  so. 

Dr.  Trumbull  was  not  easily  pliant  to  all  the 
suggestions  of  his  able  helpers.  He  had  his  own 
ideas  about  the  use  of  language,  his  idiosyncrasies, 
which  argument  would  not  shake.  For  instance,  in 
the  spelling  of  Oriental  proper  names  he  was  a  law 
unto  himself,  after  his  trip  to  the  East,  for  his  spell- 
ing of  such  words  was  closely  phonetic,  reproducing 
as  nearly  as  possible  by  the  letters  and  syllables  of 
our  own  language  the  quality  and  quantity  of  word- 
sounds  heard  in  the  common  Eastern  speech  by  his 
own  sensitive  ears,  and  then  and  there  recorded. 

He  was  ever  making  for  the  positive  in  thought 
and  deed,  and  not  for  the  negative.  The  Rev.  E. 
Morris  Fergusson,  for  some  time  associated  with  him 
in  the  editorial  work,  relates  that  once  when  a  writer 
had  mentioned  something  that  The  Sunday  School 
Times  was  not  going  to  do,  Dr.  Trumbull  struck 
his  pencil  vigorously  through  the  lines  on  the  proof. 

"That  can't  go  in!"  he  exclaimed.  "Never, 
say  what  we  are  not  going  to  do  !    Say  what  we  zcill 
do!" 

And  that  was  one  of  the  office  canons  in  the  conduct 
of  the  paper — the  positive  rather  than  the  negative. 

In  questions  of  punctuation  he  reached  conclusions 
which  were  sometimes  at  variance  with  the  convic- 
tions of  his  skilled  and  highly-prized  proof-reader, 
Miss  Georgie  Leach.    More  often  than  not  lie  would 


396  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


promptly  defer  to  her  views,  but  at  times  his  own 
conviction  was  so  clear  that  he  would  not  yield — at 
first.  Mr.  Du  Bois  tells  of  his  frequent  use  of  the 
semicolon  in  some  cases  where  a  comma  would  have 
been  preferred  by  most  writers.  On  one  occasion 
there  was  a  dispute  in  the  office  over  a  semicolon,  in 
the  use  of  which  Mr.  Du  Bois  and  the  proof-reader 
were  squarely  opposed  to  him.  The  atmosphere 
became  surcharged  with  electricity.  Dr.  Trumbull 
strode  about  the  room,  hotly  defending  his  position, 
and  finally  picked  up  his  hat  and  coat  and  started  for 
the  door.  But  he  halted  for  a  moment,  then  turned 
back  and  faced  the  managing  editor : 

"  Du  Bois,"  he  said,  "  I  will  give  up  The  Sunday 
School  Times  before  I  will  give  up  that  semicolon!  " 

When  he  returned  to  the  office  he  quietly  informed 
Mr.  Du  Bois  that  he  had  concluded  to  sacrifice  the 
semicolon. 

That  a  man  of  such  positive  individuality  could 
have  been  freely  open  to  suggestion  is  paradoxical, 
but  none  the  less  true.  Dr.  Trumbull  would  fight 
hard  for  his  opinions,  but  he  was  childlike  in  his 
willingness  to  learn  from  others.  Whatever  he  wrote 
he  generally  read  aloud  to  several  persons,  and  the 
slightest  sign  of  misunderstanding  or  doubt  on  the 
face  of  his  hearers  was  enough  to  make  him  stop, 
inquiringly,  with  an  encouraging,  "  Well,  what  is  it 
just  there  that  troubles  you?"  And  if  the  word  or 
phrase  had  not  been  quite  clear,  he  would  see  it 
instantly,  exclaiming,  "  Of  course,  of  course ;  I  see. 
I'll  change  that.  How  would  this  do  ?  "  and  he  would 
suggest  a  reshaping  or  rewording  which  would  almost 


A  Passion  for  Rightness  397 


invariably  bring  the  thought  out  with  crystal  clearness. 
Then,  lest  his  critic  should  feel  any  embarrassment, 
Trumbull  would  relieve  the  situation  by  saying  with 
mock  seriousness : 

**  I'm  glad  you  caught  that.  I  like  to  see  how  my 
writings  strike  the  average  mind.  If  you  see  what 
I'm  driving  at,  anybody  will !  " 

This  passion  for  having  things  right  was  a  con- 
trolling factor  in  all  that  Dr.  Trumbull  did.  It  did 
not  make  the  path  of  his  life  an  easy  one,  nor  did  it 
permit  him  to  be  comfortable  and  complaisant  when 
things  were  going  wrong.  He  saw  clearly  that  no 
man  liveth  unto  himself;  that  as  a  citizen  he  owed 
a  duty  to  his  fellow-citizens  to  set  things  right  in  their 
behalf  when  he  had  opportunity.  Such  an  occasion 
offered  itself  early  in  1891. 

Dr.  Trumbull  had  engaged  a  stateroom  on  the  boat 
from  New  Haven  to  New  York.  He  paid  down  one 
dollar,  and  received  a  ticket  which  was  to  be  ex- 
changed for  a  stateroom  key  on  the  boat.  This 
ticket  he  presented  to  the  purser,  who  received  from 
him  seventy-five  cents  additional  for  the  passage. 
Dr.  Trumbull  occupied  the  stateroom  that  night. 
When  he  was  about  to  leave  the  boat  in  the  morning 
an  official  asked  him  for  his  passage  ticket.  He  had 
not  received  any  when  he  paid  his  fare,  and  this  he 
explained  to  the  official,  who  nevertheless  would  not 
let  him  leave  the  boat  until,  under  indignant  protest, 
he  paid  his  fare  again,  for  which  he  took  a  receipt. 

When  he  arrived  in  Philadelphia  he  wrote  to  the 
president  of  the  company,  explaining  the  case,  and 
asking   for  the  return   of  the   seventy-five  cents. 


398  Heiny  Clay  Trtimbull 


There  was  no  response'  He  wrote  again,  and  this  time 
he  received  a  definite  refusal  of  his  request.  There- 
upon, after  notifying  the  company  of  his  intention,  he 
brought  suit  for  the  seventy-five  cents  through  his 
attorneys,  John  Sparhawk,  Jr.,  and  Samuel  B.  Huey. 
Special  Philadelphia  counsel  for  the  company  advised 
a  settlement,  but  his  clients  preferred  to  fight,  and 
engaged  associate  counsel  to  act  for  the  company. 
Having  engaged  another  lawyer,  the  company  went 
on  with  the  case.  Just  as  the  case  was  about  to  go 
before  a  jury,  the  company"  proposed  to  settle,  paying 
a  goodly  sum  for  court  costs  and  lawyer's  fees.  Dr. 
Trumbull  received  a  check  for  eighty  cents  to  cover 
the  principal  and  interest  of  his  claim,  and  signed  a 
release  which  protected  the  company  against  any  suit 
for  damages  in  the  case.  This  Dr.  Trumbull  willingly 
signed,  for  he  had  no  mind  to  do  more  than  to  exact 
right  action  from  a  public  utility  corporation  that  looked 
upon  the  rectifying  of  a  seventy-five  cent  extortion  as 
a  matter  unworthy  of  its  serious  attention.  The  case 
was  widely  reported  in  the  secular  press,  as  an  illus- 
tration of  the  performance  of  a  public  duty  by  an 
individual  who  stood  boldly  for  public  rights. 

It  was  not  only  under  the  pressure  of  such  occa- 
sions as  this  that  Dr.  Trumbull  insisted  on  rightness. 
In  all  the  little  intimate  things  of  every-day  doings  he 
was  of  the  same  mind. 

No  detail  in  his  home  was  too  small  to  deserve  his 
notice.  The  position  of  a  picture,  the  folds  of  a  por- 
tiere, the  exact  position  of  a  window-shade, — for  all 
these  he  had  a  woman's  alert  eye,  and  his  taste  was 
well-nigh  unerring.     The  hanging  of  a  picture,  the 


A  Passion  for  Rightness 


399 


placing  of  a  new  chair,  were  occasions,  not  mere 
trivial  incidents. 

An  editorial  habit  of  life,  the  close  scrutiny  of 
the  correctness  of  one's  own  thoughts  and  words  and 
deeds,  brings  great  rewards  in  character.  Dr.  Trum- 
bull's mastery  of  detail,  his  nicely-balanced  double 
regard  for  thoughts  and  things,  his  sense  of  moral 
and  material  adjustments  to  the  norm  of  rightness, 
never  held  him  back  from  vigorous,  forthfaring 
achievement,  but  gave  him  immense  relief  from  the 
disquieting  aftermath  of  work  half  done. 

In  1889  he  brought  out  a  series  of  essays  in  six 
volumes,  gathered  from  his  editorial  writings  for  The 
Sunday  School  Times.  Each  little  volume  was  a 
book,  not  a  mere  haphazard  collection.  All  were 
grouped  under  the  title  of  Principles  and  Practice." 
No  one  of  the  volumes  shows  more  faithfully  Dr. 
Trumbull's  limpid  clearness  of  style,  his  careful  bal- 
ancing of  effective  phrase,  his  unconventional  ways  of 
putting  practical  truth,  than  "  Practical  Paradoxes." 
He  tried  habitually  in  his  editorials  to  start  with  an 
assertion  which  would  quicken  thought  by  arousing 
antagonism,  and  even  some  suspicion  of  his  sanity, 
and  nowhere  is  that  method  seen  to  better  advantage 
than  in  this  group  of  titles  which  seem  altogether  self- 
destructive.  What  truth  could  dwell  beneath  such  titles 
as :  "  A  Part  is  Greater  than  the  Whole/'  "  Not  Two 
Sides  to  Every  Question,"  "  The  Duty  of  Striving  to 
Render  One's  Self  Useless  ?  "  But  as  one  reads,  the 
titles  themselves  take  on  so  vivid  an  aspect  of  pure  and 
undeniable  truth  that  they  stand  out  as  watchwords  for 
many  a  soul  in  the  unending  fight  for  character. 


400  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


Is  it  not  seen  to  be  true  that,  "  In  all  efforts  to 
arouse  men  to  duty  or  to  convince  men  of  truth,  there 
is  more  power  in  a  one-sided  or  a  partial  presentation 
of  the  case,  then  there  could  be  in  a  well-balanced 
consideration  of  all  that  is  by  any  possibility  involved 
in  the  issue  "  ?  Again,  does  it  not  appear  that  "  Rais- 
ing a  question  in  form  is  not  raising  a  question  in 
reality.  If  right  and  reason  are  both  on  one  side  of 
a  given  question,  there  is  no  other  side  that  is  worth 
considering.  ...  Is  darkness  light  ?  Is  evil  good  ? 
These  are  fairly  questions  in  form,  but  they  are  not 
fair  questions  in  fact "  ?  Yet  again,  hard  as  it  may 
seem,  to  render  oneself  useless  is  a  duty,  for  what 
does  the  faithful  physician  do  but  that  when  he 
"  strives  to  hasten  his  patient's  recovery  " ;  the  good 
teacher  when  he  "  strives  to  put  his  scholars  beyond 
the  need  of  a  teacher's  help,  so  that  the  teacher  will 
be  as  useless  to  the  scholars  as  are  the  swaddling- 
clothes  of  a  babe  to  a  full-grown  youth." 

Himself  a  paradox,  Henry  Clay  Trumbull  delighted 
in  paradoxes,  choosing  to  startle  and  perplex  in  order 
that  he  might  the  more  securely  fix  the  truth  in  other 
minds  as  he  went  on  to  steady  the  thought  and  solve 
the  contradictions,  making  the  plain  path  plainer,  in 
sharp  contrast  with  the  confusion  at  the  gateway. 
And  if  this  means  of  crowding  home  the  truth  on 
minds  of  every  temper  be  deemed  by  any  the  light 
conceit  of  a  clever  student  of  his  human  kind,  the 
mere  trick  of  a  writer,  then  let  the  example  of  the 
Master  Teacher  answer  the  charge,  for  in  such  ways 
he  himself  sent  truth  straight  home  to  startled  men. 


POWER  THROUGH  SENSITIVENESS 


It  is  not  a  matter  of  indifference  whether  we 
are  hopeful  or  not.  It  is  a  part  of  a  really  Chris- 
'  tian  way  of  looking  at  things,  although  many 
good  people  fail  to  see  it  thus,  and  incline  to 
put  despondency  in  its  place  among  the  graces 
of  the  Christian  character. — Aji  editorial  para- 
graph. 

Sensitiveness  is  a  measure  of  power  ;  but  sen- 
sitiveness is  not  in  itself  power,  nor  is  it  the 
measure  of  all  power.  Sensitiveness  is  not  the 
best  qualification  for  every  hard  service  on 
the  lower  plane  of  life.  The  sensitiveness  of  the 
standard  gold  scales  is  not  needed  for  the 
weighing  of  coal,  or  of  iron  ore  ;  nor  is  the  sen- 
sitiveness of  the  ship's  compass  desirable  in  a 
ship's  anchor.  Sensitiveness  is  a  barrier  to 
equanimity  of  feeling  ;  and,  as  a  rule,  a  per- 
son of  a  highly  sensitive  organization  is  more 
likely  to  suffer  intensely  than  to  enjoy  keenly 
in  life,  as  life  is.  But  the  highest  measure  of 
unselfish  power  for  others  is  possible  only  as  a 
result  or  as  an  accompaniment  of  exceptional 
sensitiveness  ;  and  he  who  regrets  that,  in  his 
efforts  to  be  of  service  to  others,  his  exceeding 
sensitiveness  often  causes  him  exceeding  pain, 
must  understand  that  if  he  were  less  sensitive 
to  the  feelings  and  the  needs,  and  to  the  looks, 
words,  and  ways,  of  others,  he  would  have  less 
power  as  a  source  of  help  and  of  cheer  and  of 
good  to  others.  The  measure  of  a  man's  sensi- 
tiveness is  the  measure  of  his  power  of  sym- 
pathy ;  and  the  measure  of  a  man's  power  of 
sympathy  is  the  measure  of  his  power  for  good 
to  his  fellows.  —  Ourselves  a?td  Others. 


CHAPTER  XXV 


POWER  THROUGH  SENSITIVENESS 

No  man  gets  at  the  heart  of  life's  lessons  without 
paying  dearly  for  his  gain ;  and  no  man  who  has  not 
suffered  can  come  with  understanding  into  the  service 
of  other  burdened  lives.  Only  his  intimate  friends 
knew  how  much  it  cost  Dr.  Trumbull  to  render  him- 
self serviceable,  and  few  indeed  could  know  just  how 
it  came  to  pass  that  he  seemed  so  unerringly  and 
sympathetically  to  touch  other  lives  with  precisely  the 
needed  word  or  deed. 

The  very  quality  that  enabled  him  to  enter  with 
tender  sympathy  into  the  sufferings  of  others  for  their 
relieving  made  it  inevitable  that  he  should  feel  within 
his  own  being  the  most  exquisite  mental  or  physical 
anguish.  All  his  nerve  centers  seemed  to  be  exposed 
to  the  lightest  touch  of  pain,  yet  he  bore  pain  hero- 
ically. It  sent  a  shiver  through  him  to  see  a  knife 
in  the  hands  of  a  boy.  He  was  easily  affected  by  any 
story  of  physical  suffering.  A  guest  in  liis  home  one 
evening  was  telling  of  a  clumsy  piece  of  work  by 
which  a  hospital  surgeon,  a  man  of  international 
reputation,  had  destroyed  a  woman's  life  while  oper- 
ating on  her  eye.  Dr.  Trumbull  seemed  to  give  little 
heed  to  the  story  in  the  telling,  but  at  the  close  he 
cried  out  suddenly  as  if  in  agony,  and,  burying  his 

403 


404  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


face  in  his  hands,  rocked  back  and  forth  in  his  chair 
in  keen  consciousness  of  what  the  story  really  meant 
to  the  poor  woman. 

This  sensitiveness  was  not  merely  physical.  He 
was  so  impetuous  in  speech  that  his  words  would 
sometimes  cut,  when  he  had  no  thought  of  hurting 
the  person  to  whom  he  was  speaking,  but  only  of 
striking  as  hard  as  he  could  at  the  wrong  he  was 
attacking.  Then  when  he  found  that  he  had  really 
caused  pain  to  another,  contrition  would  overwhelm 
him,  and  he  would  chide  himself  unsparingly  for  his 
outbreak,  seeking  in  such  ways  as  he  might  to  heal 
the  wound. 

He  was  busy  at  his  office  desk  one  day  when  he 
slightly  injured  one  of  his  fingers.  The  pain  in- 
creased. He  was  annoyed  and  distressed.  Hurry- 
ing; to  another  room  where  one  of  his  co-workers  was 
seated,  he  inquired  whether  his  helper  could  give  him 
a  finger  from  an  old  glove  to  slip  over  the  injured 
member.  There  was  nothing  of  the  sort  at  hand,  so 
far  as  the  helper  knew,  and  he  said  so. 

"  Well,  what  of  that  ?  "  cried  Trumbull, "  I  must  have 
something  of  the  sort.    Can  you  get  it,  or  not  ?  " 

He  spoke  quickly  and  imperiously.  The  man  at 
the  desk  reached  to  his  own  overcoat-pocket,  drew 
out  a  pair  of  brand  new  gloves,  seized  the  shears 
lying  near,  and  clipped  a  thumb  out  of  one  glove 
before  the  doctor  quite  knew  what  was  going  on. 
Trumbull  melted.  His  eyes  filled.  Then  he  laughed 
in  appreciation  of  the  situation,  and  drawing  a  two 
dollar  bill  from  his  pocket,  he  laid  it  on  his  helper's 
desk,  and  passed  out  of  the  room,  thanking  him 


Powe7^  Through  Sensitiveness  405 


heartily,  and  chuckling  to  himself  over  the  incident. 
But  Dr.  Trumbull  never  knew  that  the  two  dollar  bill 
was  passed  to  his  credit  at  the  cashier's  desk  the  next 
moment.  If  he  had,  his  assistant's  salary  might  have 
been  raised  in  retaliation. 

Dr.  Trumbull  did  not  believe  that  sensitiveness  was 
a  characteristic  to  be  regretted.  He  taught  that  sen- 
sitiveness was  a  measure  of  power,  a  capacity  for 
getting  into  touch  with  life  and  duty.  An  unsensitive 
man  might  be  comfortable,  but  he  could  never  be 
truly  sympathetic,  nor  could  he  attain  to  man's 
highest  possibiHties.  Hence  Dr.  Trumbull  did  not 
try  to  steel  himself  against  the  sendings  of  divine 
providence,  but  counted  his  capacity  for  suffering  a 
means  of  making  his  experiences  by  so  much  the 
more  effective  for  others.  He  translated  his  experi- 
ences into  a  language  easily  understood  by  those  who 
had  passed  through  the  same  school ;  indeed,  nearly 
all  his  editorial  writings  were  wrung  from  him  under 
the  pressure  of  moral  warfare  or  spiritual  and  physical 
tribulation.  He  knew  that  his  temptations,  his  per- 
plexities, his  trials,  were  common  to  all  in  greater  or 
less  degree,  so  what  he  had  learned  in  and  through 
them  he  set  forth  with  fidelity  for  the  gain  of  others. 
That  was  the  secret  of  the  sympathetic,  instant  appeal 
of  his  ethical  writings, — their  source  in  the  deep 
springs  of  a  varied,  sensitive,  crowded  life. 

Coming  to  my  room  one  day — he  rarely  sent  for 
any  one  to  come  to  his  room — Dr.  Trumbull  told  me 
of  an  occurrence  that  had  cut  him  to  the  quick,  and 
he  plainly  showed  his  suffering.  But  rousing  himself 
from  his  momentary  depression  he  said,  confidently : 


4o6  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


"  I  guess  the  Lord  knows  when  to  put  the  screws 
on.  I  don't  know  why  this  thing  has  come,  but  any- 
way I'll  get  an  editorial  note  out  of  it  that  may  help 
somebody,"  and  he  started  back  to  his  desk  to  write 
the  paragraph. 

In  the  track  of  the  years  deep  lines  had  formed  on 
Dr.  Trumbull's  countenance.  His  forehead  was  fur- 
rowed, and  around  his  wonderfully  expressive  blue 
eyes  there  were  wrinkles  unnumbered.  His  hair  was 
black  and  abundant,  while  his  long  beard  was  only 
slightly  touched  with  gray.  One  day  a  package  of 
photographs  of  himself  was  laid  on  his  desk.  He 
drew  out  a'  print,  and  gazed  at  it  in  amazement. 
Then  he  dropped  it  in  disgust. 

"  See  here,"  he  cried,  '*  that  photographer  has  taken 
out  every  wrinkle  !  Those  wrinkles  cost  me  too  much 
to  have  them  destroyed  in  any  such  way  as  that. 
The  pictures  won't  do  !  " 

With  the  opening  of  the  nineties  Dr.  Trumbull  saw 
before  him  the  beginning  of  experiences  which  might 
easily  have  caused  the  wrinkles  to  grow  deeper,  and 
his  sensitive  nature  to  recoil  with  dread.  What  he 
would  have  done  without  work  and  friends,  and  the 
steady  flame  of  his  faith  in  God,  no  one  may  know. 
As  it  was  he  kept  on  and  kept  up,  and  his  victory 
became  the  victory  of  many  a  spent  and  broken  spirit 
who  took  courage  from  the  lessons  wrought  out  in  a 
life  wherein  God  made  the  round  of  his  promises  so 
manifest. 

For  several  years  John  Wattles,  upon  whom  Trum- 
bull heavily  leaned  in  all  vital  questions  of  editing 
and  publishing  The  Sunday  School  Times,  had  been 


4 


Power  Through  Sensitiveness  407 

making  a  losing  fight  for  life.  Winter  after  winter  he 
had  been  obliged  to  live  in  Florida,  where  his  lungs 
might  have  a  favoring  atmosphere.  He  had  driven 
the  circulation  of  The  Sunday  School  Times  to  more 
than  one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  copies,  and  he 
was  by  no  means  expecting  to  stop  there.  But  Mr. 
Wattles  was  not  gaining  in  health,  and  his  work  was 
halting  just  short  of  his  hopes  and  purposes.  Trum- 
bull hardly  dared  face  the  possibility  of  a  separation 
from  his  son-in-law  and  partner. 

At  this  time  Mrs.  Trumbull  began  to  show  signs  of 
failing  health.  She  was  everything  to  her  husband 
and  to  her  home.  Not  given  to  public  services,  she 
had  devoted  herself  to  her  family  and  her  friends. 
One  wealthy  woman  in  the  neighborhood  bemoaning 
the  fact  that  personal  criticism  was  so  common  in 
social  intercourse,  said  to  a  friend : 

"  I  suppose  one  can  hardly  keep  clear  of  criticism. 
Every  woman  I  know  is  criticised, — excepting  Mrs. 
Trumbull." 

His  solicitude  for  these  two  who  were  so  dear  to 
him  made  inroads  on  Dr.  Trumbull's  vitality,  yet  he 
gave  little  sign  of  this  outwardly.  He  worked  harder 
than  ever.  In  1889  he  delivered  before  the  Archaeo- 
logical Association  of  the  University  of  Pennsylvania 
and  in  1890  before  the  Semitic  Club  of  Yale  a  series 
of  lectures  on  "  Oriental  Social  Life,"  which  he 
published  in  1894.  In  1 890  he  wrote  and  published 
"  Hints  on  Child  Training,"  a  book  of  experience  and 
observation,  in  which  his  sound  common  sense,  his 
wide  knowledge  of  educational  principles,  and  his 
lucid  style  of  expression  combined  to  inspire  high 


4o8  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


ideals  and  to  suggest  definite  child-training  principles 
and  methods  to  parents  schooled  or  unschooled  in 
true  child-study. 

Then  he  bent  his  energies  with  all  his  magnificent 
intensity  to  the  completing  of  his  book  on  friendship, 
plunging  into  the  accumulated  material  of  fifteen 
years,  revising  early  chapters,  completing  new  por- 
tions, until  in  the  early  summer  of  1891  his  manu- 
script was  finished. 

"  Friendship  the  Master- Passion "  is  the  title  he 
gave  to  it, — the  book  that  had  taken  him  farther 
afield  than  any  he  ever  wrote,  that  had  cost  him  most 
in  aspiring  struggle  toward  an  ideal,  and  that  disclosed 
even  more  than  any  other  of  his,  within  the  scope  of 
one  great  theme,  his  power  of  discerning  truth,  and 
the  unsparing  tirelessness  of  his  search  for  light  on 
a  truth  which  he  sought  to  establish. 

It  is  because  of  my  own  indebtedness  to  friend- 
ship," he  wrote,  "that  I  have  sought  to  uplift  this 
sentiment  before  others,  in  its  true  worth  as  an  ideal 
and  in  its  practical  value  as  an  attainment.  .  .  .  Finding 
thus  how  much  I  owed  to  the  incitements  and  aspira- 
tions and  self-conquests  of  friendship,  I  set  myself  to 
discover  how  much  others  also  were  indebted  to  the 
influence  of  this  transcendent  sentiment ;  and  so  it 
was  that  I  was  led  to  track  along  the  passing  centu- 
ries the  glowing  evidences  of  friendship  as  the  master- 
passion  of  humanity. 

"The  common  thought  is,  that  'love'  and  'friend- 
ship *  merely  differentiate  degrees  of  affection ;  and  that 
intensity  and  devotedness  are  the  distinguishing  char- 
acteristics of  '  love '  in  comparison  with  'friendship.' 


Power  Through  Sensitiveness  409 


But  the  place  given  in  both  sacred  and  classic  story 
to  the  illustrations  of  self-sacrificing  friendship  proves 
that  no  lack  of  depth  and  fervor  limits  the  force  and 
sway  of  this  expression  of  personal  attachment. 
Greater  love  hath  no  man  than  that  love  which  is 
shown  in  friendship,  at  its  best  and  truest  manifesta- 
tion. Not  in  its  measure,  but  in  its  very  nature,  is  an 
unselfish  friendship  distinguishable  from  a  love  which 
pivots  on  a  reciprocal  relation,  secured  or  desired. 

**  Friendship  by  its  very  nature  consists  in  loving, 
rather  than  in  being  loved.  In  other  words,  friendship 
consists  in  being  a  friend,  not  in  having  a  friend ;  in 
giving  one's  affection  unselfishly  and  unswervingly 
to  another,  not  in  being  the  object  of  another's  affec- 
tion, or  in  reciprocating  such  an  affection.  .  .  .  Friend- 
ship-love, as  a  love  that  is  unselfish,  uncraving, 
ever  out-going,  and  ever  on-going,  is  in  its  very 
nature  divine  love.  It  is  such  a  love  as  God  gives, 
and  as  man  ought  to  give  to  God.  It  is  such  a 
love  as  man  should  give  to  his  fellow-man  for  God's 
sake.  *  If  ye  love  them  that  love  you,  what  thank 
have  ye?'  asks  our  Lord;  *for  even  sinners  love 
those  that  love  them.'  A  love  or  a  friendship  that  is 
conditioned  on  an  equivalent  return  is  not  friendship- 
love,  except  in  name.  That  love  which  is  represented 
to  us  in  the  Bible  as  of  God,  and  from  God,  and  due 
toward  God  and  toward  those  who  are  God's,  is 
friendship-love — the  purest  and  best  of  loves." 

Day  by  day  Dr.  Trumbull  would  read  to  his  wife 
what  he  had  written,  while  she,  as  always,  listened 
with  womanly  sympathy  and  discrimination  to  the 
unfolding  of  his  theme.    It  was  not  long  after  Mrs. 


4IO  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


Trumbull  had  heard  the  final  chapter  on  the  life- 
transfiguring  power  of  friendship  that  her  sweet  and 
unselfish  life  came  to  its  new  beginning.  To  her  the 
book  was  dedicated : 

"  To  the  memory  of  my  dear  wife,  who  was  the  best 
illustration  I  ever  knew  of  a  life  of  self-forgetful  friend- 
ship, and  who  watched  with  sympathetic  interest  the 
progress  of  these  pages  to  their  very  close  before 
closing  her  eyes  to  earth,  I  dedicate  this  volume  in 
grateful  affection." 

"  She  had  no  longings  for  a  life  that  was  not  hers," 
wrote  Dr.  Trumbull  in  his  memorial  of  his  wife.  "  She 
never  seemed  to  wish  that  her  husband  could  give  a 
larger  share  of  his  time  to  her,  and  less  to  his  mis- 
sionary labors,  nor  yet  that  her  home  duties  were  less 
onerous  and  exacting.  Whatever  was  to  be  done  for 
her  husband  or  children  she  was  glad  to  do,  and  in 
doing  for  them  she  was  finding  her  own  enjoyment. 
She  was  always  wholly  absorbed  in  the  work  she  was 
doing  for  another,  until  a  fresh  call  came  to  her  to 
help  some  one  else.  Meanwhile  she  was  of  constant 
service  to  her  husband  in  his  work  and  in  his  studies ; 
and  the  chief  credit  for  his  best  doing  was  due  to  her. 

**  A  peculiar  charm  of  Mrs.  Trumbull  was  her  un- 
mistakable personal  interest  in  each  and  every  indi- 
vidual with  whom  she  was  in  conversation,  or  to 
whom  she  had  an  opportunity  of  ministering.  It  was 
not  merely  that  she  seemed  to  be  living  just  then  for 
the  sole  purpose  of  showing  sympathy  with,  or  of 
serving,  that  person ;  but  it  was  that  that  really  was 
her  then  object  of  life.  Another's  need — no  matter 
what  that  need  might  be — was  the  moral  lodestone 


Power  Through  Sensitiveness  411 


which  attracted  her  heart,  as  the  polar  star  attracts 
the  compass-needle ;  and  toward  that  need  that  heart 
went  out  unfaihngly. 

"  Whether  it  were  her  husband  or  her  child  or  her 
sister  or  her  brother  in  her  home,  or  a  guest  in  her 
parlor,  or  a  servant  in  her  kitchen,  or  a  postman,  or 
an  errand-boy,  or  a  pensioner  for  charity  at  her  door, 
or  an  acquaintance  on  the  street,  or  a  tradesman's 
clerk  at  a  shop  where  she  was  dealing, — whoever  it 
was  to  whom  she  spoke, — her  eye  looked  sympathy, 
and  the  tones  of  her  voice  expressed  kindly  feeling. 
When  she  was  spoken  to,  her  ears  were  attent  as  for 
her  life — and  the  life  of  the  speaker;  and  whoever 
listened  to  her,  or  to  whom  she  listened,  felt,  and  was 
entitled  to  feel,  that  for  the  time  being  a  friend  was 
found  in  her. 

"  Many  an  occasional  caller  at  her  home  has  said, 
*  I  always  felt  that,  somehow,  Mrs.  Trumbull  had  a 
special  interest  in  me,' — and  she  had.  Every  servant 
of  hers  loved  her  for  her  kindly  personal  interest  in 
that  servant,  and  was  ready  to  do  for  her  more  than  a 
servant's  prescribed  duties. 

**  The  superintendent  of  the  district  telegraph  in  her 
part  of  the  city  said,  not  long  before  her  death,  that 
when  a  ring  for  a  messenger  came  from  '4103  Walnut 
Street,'  every  boy  in  the  office  would  jump  for  the 
privilege  of  responding  to  it,  because  he  was  sure  of  a 
smile  and  a  kind  word  from  Mrs.  Trumbull,  with  sub- 
stantial '  goodies  '  of  some  sort  in  addition.  And  the 
veteran  postman  of  that  route  said,  at  the  close  of  her 
life,  *  She  was  the  best  woman  who  ever  lived,*  as  he 
recalled  gratefully  the  cups  of  hot  coffee  she  had  so 


412  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 

many  times  had  ready  for  him  in  the  stormy  morn- 
ings of  winter  days,  and  the  sympathetic  manner  in 
which  she  had  commiserated  him  for  the  toilsomeness 
of  his  lot  in  such  weather  as  that. 

"  Her  home  was  both  the  center  and  the  circum- 
ference of  Mrs.  Trumbull's  active  Christian  labors ; 
but  it  was  by  no  means  the  circumference,  although 
it  was  the  center,  of  her  direct  Christian  influence. 
She  found  so  much  to  do,  for  those  who  were  in  that 
home,  or  who  sought  her  there  from  outside,  that  she 
could  never  have  entered  upon  any  special  work  away 
from  it  without  neglecting  some  work  there  that  she 
saw  to  be  her  duty  and  that  she  loved  to  be  engaged 
in.  She  had  no  interest  in  society  life,  as  such.  She 
did  not  even  take  an  active  part  in  organized  religious 
movements  in  the  community  at  large.  She  gave 
herself  unreservedly  and  wholly  to  the  needs  of  those 
whom  God  had  called  her  to  minister  to  in  the  home 
of  his  ordaining;  and  there  and  thus  she  continued 
faithful  unto  death." 

On  the  first  anniversary  of  Mrs.  Trumbull's  death, 
he  wrote  to  Robert  E.  Speer : 

This  has  been  a  year  of  great  trial  to  me,  as  well  as  a  year 
of  rich  experiences  of  God's  love.  It  has  been  hard  at  times 
to  bear  up,  and  I  joy  in  the  unspeakable  love  of  Christ.  A 
sense  of  my  great  loss  presses  on  me  at  this  anniversary  time  ; 
and  again  I  am  newly  anxious  over  my  son-in-law  and  partner, 
Mr.  Wattles. 

I  don' t  quite  see  how  I  could  get  on  in  the  work  that  God 
has  set  me  to  if  Mr.  Wattles  were  taken  away.  Indeed,  I 
didn't  see  how  I  could  live  if  my  wife  were  taken  from  me.  I 
do  not  doubt  my  Father's  love  or  my  Saviour's  sympathy,  but 
I  do  wince  and  shrink,  for  I  am  so  human. 


Power  Through  Sensitiveness  413 


There  is  comfort  to  me  in  the  thought  that  Jesus  could  weep 
as  he  stood  by  a  closed  grave  which  he  was  soon  to  open. 
Surely  he  will  not  blame  us  for  weeping  when  we  stand  by 
closed  graves  that  we  cannot  open,  even  though  we  are  to  have 
joy  beyond  them. 

Within  a  few  weeks  Mr.  Wattles,  with  his  wife  and 
one  of  their  sons,  left  Philadelphia  for  Sarasota, 
Florida,  and  for  the  first  time  he  passed  out  of  his 
office  for  his  winter  sojourn  in  the  South  without  bid- 
ding each  of  his  helpers  farewell.  He  would  keep  up 
the  fight,  but  it  was  evident  that  he  saw  the  end  not 
far  away,  and  that  he  could  not  bear  the  strain  of 
parting  words  with  his  long-time  helpers  and  friends. 

Then  a  sense  of  profound  loneliness  closed  in  upon 
Henry  Clay  Trumbull ;  but  in  this  hour  of  peculiar 
trial,  even  as  in  the  old  army  days  when  Henry  Camp 
came  into  his  life,  so  now  another  had  entered  whose 
friendship  was  very  life  to  him.  His  acquaintance 
with  Robert  E.  Speer,  begun  in  Speer's  Princeton 
days,  ripened  in  student  conferences  at  Middletown 
and  Northfield,  and  growing  into  veritable  friendship 
with  all  that  friendship  meant  to  the  author  of 
"  Friendship  the  Master  Passion," — this  was  God's 
way  of  providing  for  his  servant  in  his  time  of  need. 
To  Speer  Dr.  Trumbull  wrote : 

Do  you  realize  how  much  you  are  doing  for  me  now  ?  Do 
you  comprehend  the  fulness  of  blessing  you  are  as  Christ's 
loving  messenger  to  me  ?  Nothing  in  all  my  experience  of  his 
love  has  been  more  than  this  in  its  timeliness  and  in  its 
potency  ;  and  I  am  renewedly  amazed  at  and  grateful  for 
it  .  .  .  You  have  given  me  of  your  strong  life,  and  I  actually 
live  on  through  your  generous  outpouring  of  yourself. 


414  Henry  Clay  Tritinbiill 


Again,  he  wrote : 

You  know  something  of  what  I  feel  as  to  the  younger 
generation  in  Christ.  We  who  are  of  the  John  the  Baptist 
dispensation  may  have  done  well  in  our  day,  but  even  the 
least  of  you  in  the  new  age  are  greater  than  those  who  went 
before  you,  "God  having  provided  some  better  thing  for 
you." 

You  have  been  sent  to  me  to  do  a  work  for  me  that  no  one 
else  on  earth  could  have  done.  Your  ways  and  words  within 
the  past  two  months  have  given  me  life  and  hope  according  to 
my  need,  and  according  to  my  dear  Lord's  love  for  me.  .  .  . 
You  can  never  be  sorry  that  you  have  poured  forth  of  your 
own  life  in  the  fruit  of  the  vine  so  unstintedly. 

Dr.  Trumbull  would  go  to  New  York  for  the  sole 
purpose  of  talking  out  with  his  young  friend  a  phase 
of  truth  upon  which  the  mind  of  either  might  be 
working,  and  Speer  would  seize  whatever  opportuni- 
ties he  could  from  his  busy  Hfe  to  have  an  hour  with 
Dr.  Trumbull  in  his  Philadelphia  home.  A  visit  from 
Speer  was  wholly  tonic  to  the  older  man,  and  for  days 
afterwards  he  would  talk  of  their  interview,  finding  in 
the  fellowship  and  its  remembrance  new  power  for 
his  daily  toil.  This  friendship  set  wide  the  doors  of 
Trumbull's  mind  to  the  incoming  of  new  views  of 
truth  as  his  friend  saw  truth,  and,  notwithstanding  all 
the  ripe  experience  of  his  more  than  three-score  years, 
rendered  him  freely  accessible  to  the  hght  that  came 
to  him  from  the  younger,  truth-seeking  soul  he  loved. 
He  expressed  this  characteristically : 

I  value  exceedingly  your  perceptions  of  spiritual  truth  ;  and 
I  want  to  have  the  personal  benefit  of  them.  I  am  more  of  a 
gainer  than  you  can  be  through  this  friendship,  for  I  have 
greater  need,  and  a  better  helper  ;  and  I  want  you  to  tell  me 


Power  ThroiLgJi  Se^isitiveness        4 1 5 


with  utmost  freedom  where  you  deem  my  views  at  fault  or 
imperfect — at  any  time,  at  all  times. 

Already  my  views  have  been  modified  by  you  in  some  lines, 
and  intensified  in  others  ;  and  I  want  yet  greater  gain  through 
you  in  all  directions.  I  am  sure  that  with  your  spirit  you 
could  not  disturb  me  in  the  slightest  by  any  exhibit  possible 
to  you  of  difference  of  opinion  with  me  ;  and  I  am  sure  that 
with  my  feelings  towards  you  I  could  not  but  be  glad  to  hold 
open  for  revision  or  for  new  examination  the  dearest  views 
of  my  heart  on  vital  truth.  I  know  that  we  are  members 
one  of  another  in  Christ,  and  yet  he  has  brought  us  together 
to  be  helpers  one  of  another  in  his  love  and  faith  ;  so  that 
there  cannot  be  discord  even  where  there  is  temporary 
difference. 

In  January,  1893,  the  young  assistant  whom  Mr. 
Wattles  had  begun  to  train  as  his  successor,  and  who 
in  October,  1891,  had  married  a  daughter  of  Dr. 
Trumbull's,  was  taken  suddenly  and  alarmingly  ill 
with  a  sharp  attack  of  pneumonia.  For  weeks  the 
news  from  Mr.  Wattles  had  been  less  and  less  encour- 
aging, and  now  Trumbull  must  face  the  possibility  of 
losing  yet  another  from  the  circle  of  his  family  and 
co-workers. 

How  dark  ever>'thing  would  be,"  he  wrote  to 
Speer,  "  if  the  light  did  not  come  straight  from  above. 
But  the  strong  arm  is  a  sure  support,  and  the  loving 
heart  is  such  a  comfort." 

One  evening  Dr.  Trumbull  entered  the  room  of  his 
young  son-in-law  when  the  lamp  of  life  was  burning 
very  low.  In  semi-consciousness  the  patient  saw 
the  tender  smile  on  the  face  of  his  beloved  friend, 
saw  him  kneel  at  his  bedside,  and  heard  him  pray. 
Trumbull  was  praying  that  night  for  the  life  of  a  man, 
and  the  language  of  his  prayer  seemed  never  more 


4i6  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


childlike, — a  familiar,  trustful  appeal  to  the  love  of  a 
listening  father.  Peace  came  to  the  sufferer  with  that 
prayer.  Under  the  providentially  guided  skill  of  the 
physicians  and  nurse  came  convalescence,  and  then 
full  recovery  under  the  palms  on  the  far  gulf  coast  of 
Florida,  where  John  Wattles  meanwhile  was  making 
his  last  fight  for  life. 

Mr.  Wattles  seemed  to  choose  the  day  and  hour 
when  he  should  loose  his  hold  upon  the  life  to  which 
he  had  clung  with  pain-filled  tenacity  for  years.  He 
saw  that  just  then  others  were  at  hand  to  make  her 
homeward  journey  somewhat  lighter  for  Mrs.  Wattles, 
so  he  set  his  face  with  solemn  joy  shining  in  his  eyes 
toward  the  port  of  his  desire.  Through  the  open  win- 
dows came  the  music  of  the  waves  and  the  soft  murmur 
of  the  southern  breeze  in  the  palms  along  the  shore. 
He  had  sailed  those  waters  year  after  year,  a  master- 
hand  at  sailing  craft,  not  given  to  much  reefing,  liking 
rather  to  carry  sail  until  something  gave,  than  to  give 
in  himself  to  any  wind  that  blew. 

Calmly  and  cheerfully  he  bade  his  loved  ones  fare- 
well, and  when  he  crossed  the  bar  on  that  March 
morning  his  boat  lay  tugging  at  her  anchor  as 
though  she  too  would  go. 

***** 

At  the  north  a  man  well  on  in  years  took  up  new 
tasks  vvdth  the  courage  of  a  Christian.  To  his  friend 
he  wrote : 

"  I  am  sure  of  my  loving  Father's  help,  and  of  the 
Spirit's  guidance,  and  of  the  dear  Saviour's  constant 
presence  and  sympathy,  and  I  know  that  all  will  be 
well." 


DETERMINING  THE  BORDER  LINES 


"When  a  man  begins  to  argue  for  a  lower  stand- 
ard in  ethics  than  he  used  to  hold  up,  it  is  fair 
to  suspect  him  of  having  already  lowered  the 
standard  of  morals  in  his  personal  life. 

One  of  our  high  privileges  of  manhood  is  the 
privilege  of  not  touching  what  may  harm  us. 

The  freest  man  in  the  world  is  the  man  who  is 
a  willing  servant  of  Christ.  The  veriest  slave  in 
the  world  is  the  man  who  thinks  he  is  his  own 
master,  while  he  is  the  bond-servant  of  his  own 
lusts. — From  editorial  paragraphs. 


CHAPTER  XXVI 


DETERMINING  THE  BORDER  LINES 

In  the  autumn  of  1893,  Dr.  Trumbull's  only  son, 
in  that  year  a  graduate  of  Yale,  took  his  place  by  his 
father's  side  in  the  editorial  work  of  The  Sunday 
School  Times.  As  a  college  student,  and  under  the 
influence  of  the  Northfield  spirit,  Charles  Gallaudet 
Trumbull  had  opened  his  thought  to  a  frank  consid- 
eration of  the  foreign  medical  mission  field  as  his  field, 
but  it  became  clear  to  him  that  the  call  of  duty  sum- 
moned him  to  service  in  the  institution  which  his 
father  had  brought  into  a  place  of  world-wide  influ- 
ence. D.  L.  Moody  knew  of  young  Trumbull's  incli- 
nation toward  medical  missions.  One  day,  when  Mr. 
Moody  was  calling  on  Dr.  Trumbull,  the  editor  told 
him  of  his  son's  final  decision. 

"Well!"  exclaimed  Mr.  Moody,  in  his  emphatic 
way,  "you  tell  Charley  that  there  isn't  a  bigger  mis- 
sionary field  in  the  world  than  The  Sunday  School 
Times. " 

Mr.  Trumbull  had  a  desk  close  beside  his  father's 
in  the  open  editorial  rooms,  and  tlicrc  he  patiently 
studied  the  first  principles  of  editorial  work,  listening 
to  and  taking  part  in  the  office  discussions,  mean- 
while drawing  his  own  conclusions  with  a  quiet  inde- 
pendence of  judgment  altogether  natural  to  the  son  of 

419 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


his  father.  Within  a  few  years  Dr.  Trumbull  had 
come  to  rely  so  freely  upon  his  son  in  all  editorial 
affairs  that  he  himself  almost  entirely  withdrew  from 
the  editorial  management  of  the  paper,  and  wrote  for 
it  only  as  he  felt  so  inclined. 

In  1893,  however,  Dr.  Trumbull  was  in  the  thick 
of  a  controversy  involving  the  question  of  questions 
in  ethics.  Is  a  he  ever  justifiable  ?  He  had  dealt  with 
that  question  editorially  and  in  his  answers  to  corre- 
spondents,— the  Notes  on  Open  Letters  department  of 
his  paper.  He  was  astounded  to  find  ministers,  theo- 
logical professors,  teachers  of  ethics,  and  prominent 
laymen  squarely  opposed  to  his  conclusions.  Dr. 
Robert  Ellis  Thompson,  editorially  his  associate, 
urged  him  to  write  out  his  views  more  fully  in  book 
form,  for  Dr.  Thompson,  familiar  as  he  was  with  the 
ethical  and  religious  thought  of  the  ages,  knew  that 
Trumbull  was  drawing  a  moral  line  that  needed  sharp 
definition. 

It  was  not  a  new  question  with  Dr.  Trumbull.  In- 
deed, it  was  not  a  question  at  all.  He  did  recog- 
nize that  the  "  lie  of  necessity  "  was  approved  by 
many,  debated  by  more,  and  repudiated  by  a  few. 
He  had  met  the  question  years  before  once  for  all  in 
his  own  life,  as  a  moral  issue,  and  his  subsequent 
studies  had  left  no  room  for  any  doubt  on  his  part  that 
there  was  only  one  side  to  the  question. 

When  he  was  a  prisoner  of  war  in  1863,  in  Colum- 
bia, South  Carolina,  he  with  others  was  confined  in 
the  common  jail,  with  no  parole  to  bar  an  attempt  to 
escape.  A  plan  of  escape  was  proposed,  under  which 
it  would  probably  be  necessary  to  tell  a  lie  to  the  cap- 


Determming  the  Border  Lines  421 


tors.  Trumbull  would  have  no  part  in  the  plan.  He 
did  not  agree  with  others  that  a  condition  of  war  sus- 
pended the  obligation  of  refusing  to  lie  because  he 
believed  that  a  lie  was  under  any  circumstances  a  sin 
against  God. 

"A  lie,"  he  reasoned,  "is  contrar}^  to  the  very  na- 
ture of  God.  '  It  is  impossible  for  God  to  He.'  And 
if  God  cannot  lie,  God  cannot  authorize  another  to 
lie.  What  is  unjustifiable  in  God's  sight,  is  without  a 
possibility  of  justification  in  the  universe.  No  per- 
sonal or  social  emergency  can  justify  a  lie,  whatever 
may  be  its  apparent  gain,  or  whatever  harm  may  seem 
to  be  involved  in  a  refusal  to  speak  it."  Chaplain 
Trumbull  refused  *'to  seek  release  from  imprisonment 
at  the  cost  of  a  sin  against  God." 

Through  the  years  he  had  frequent  occasion  to  face 
and  to  discuss  the  question.  When,  in  the  summer  of 
1893,  he  wrote  his  book,  "A  Lie  Never  Justifiable," 
he  had  reached  conclusions  which  he  was  prepared  to 
defend.  His  study  of  history,  sacred  and  secular,  had 
revealed  the  fact  that  "  the  Bible,  and  also  the  other 
sacred  books  of  the  world,  and  the  best  moral  sense 
of  mankind  everywhere,  are  united  in  deeming  a  lie 
incompatible  with  the  idea  of  a  holy  God,  and  con- 
sistent only  with  the  spirit  of  man's  arch-enemy — the 
embodiment  of  all  evil.  Therefore  he  who,  admitting 
this,  would  find  a  place  in  God's  providential  plan  for 
a  'lie  of  necessity'  must  begin  with  claiming  that  there 
are  lies  which  are  not  lies.  Hence  it  is  of  prime  im- 
portance to  define  a  lie  clearly,  and  to  distinguish  it 
from  allowable  and  proper  concealments  of  truth. 

'*  A  lie,  in  its  stricter  sense,  is  the  affirming,  by 


42  2  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


word  or  by  action,  of  that  which  is  not  true,  with  a  pur- 
pose of  deceiving;  or  the  denying,  by  word  or  by  action, 
of  that  which  is  true,  with  a  purpose  of  deceiving. 

"The  duty  of  right  concealment  stands  over  against 
the  sin  of  lying.  Whatever  ought  to  be  concealed, 
should  be  concealed,  if  concealment  is  a  possibility 
without  sinning.  But  the  strongest  desire  for  con- 
cealment can  never  justify  a  He  as  a  means  of  con- 
cealment; and  concealment  at  the  cost  of  a  He 
becomes  a  sin  through  the  means  employed  for  its 
securing.  On  the  other  hand,  when  disclosure  is  a 
duty,  concealment  is  sinful,  because  it  is  made  to 
stand  in  the  way  of  the  performance  of  a  duty.  .  .  . 

"  Concealment  for  the  mere  purpose  of  concealment 
maybe  not  only  justifiable,  but  a  duty" — even  though 
another  may  be  self-deceived  by  such  concealment. 
However,  "concealment  for  the  purpose  of  deception 
is  never  justifiable.  .  .  . 

"It  is  true  that  this  distinction  is  a  delicate  one, 
but  it  is  a  distinction  none  the  less  real  on  that  ac- 
count. A  moral  line,  like  a  mathematical  line,  has 
length,  but  neither  breadth  nor  thickness.  And  the 
line  that  separates  a  justifiable  concealment  which 
causes  self-deception  on  the  part  of  those  who  are  not 
entitled  to  know  the  whole  truth  in  the  matter,  and 
the  deliberate  concealment  of  truth  for  the  specific 
purpose  of  deception,  is  a  line  that  runs  all  the  way 
up  from  the  foundation  to  the  summit  of  the  universe." 

In  brief,  these  are  the  statements  of  principle  in 
what  Mr.  Speer  has  called  Dr.  Trumbull's  most  char- 
acteristic book.  And  the  summing  up,  "  The  Gist  of 
the  Matter,"  contains  these  words : 


Determining  the  Border  Lines  423 


A  lie  is  the  opposite  of  truth,  and  a  being  who 
will  lie  stands  opposed  to  God,  who  by  his  very  na- 
ture cannot  lie.  ...  If  there  be  such  a  thing  as  a  sin 
per  se,  a  lie  is  that  thing ;  as  a  lie  is,  in  its  very  na- 
ture, in  hostihty  to  the  being  of  God.  .  .  .  Whatever 
be  the  seeming  gain  to  result  from  a  He,  it  is  the  seem- 
ing gain  from  a  sin." 

Even  as  Dr.  Trumbull  saw  with  clearness  the  moral 
line  between  the  true  and  the  false,  so  he  perceived 
dividing  lines  to  which  he  gave  definition  in  the  field 
of  popular  practises  concerning  which  there  is  differ- 
ence of  opinion  among  good  people  in  every  com- 
munity. Such  lines,  to  very  many,  do  not  measure 
the  shortest  distance  between  two  points,  but  wander 
capriciously  over  a  vague  domain.  Dr.  Trumbull 
could  not  tolerate  vagueness  in  his  own  thought,  and 
here,  as  in  other  questions,  he  had  positive  views, 
which  he  expressed  in  conversation,  in  his  paper,  and 
in  a  book  which  he  called  "  Border  Lines  in  the  Field 
of  Doubtful  Practices." 

On  the  subject  of  the  moderate  drinking  of  intoxi- 
cating liquors,  he  held  that  "  If,  indeed,  the  duty  were 
laid  of  God  upon  every  Christian  to  use  intoxicating 
drinks  as  a  beverage,  whether  he  wants  them  or  not, 
then  we  should  have  no  alternative  but  to  go  forward 
and  take  the  risks.  It  will,  however,  be  admitted  by 
the  most  zealous  adv^ocates  of  moderate  drinking,  that 
no  specific  command  in  the  Bible  enjoins  such  drink- 
ing on  everybody  ;  and  that  the  Christian  liberty  of  the 
Bible  includes  the  liberty  of  letting  liquor  alone.  .  .  . 

"  Looking  around  him,  every  man  sees  that  better 
men  than  himself  have  become  drunkards  through 


424  Hen7^y  Clay  Trumbull 


attempting  to  be  moderate  drinkers,  and  that  there  is 
no  certainty  that  he  will  not  drink  to  excess  if  he 
drinks  at  all,  while  he  is  perfectly  safe  so  long  as  he 
remains  a  total  abstainer — as  he  is  privileged  to  re- 
main. .  .  .  Having,  then,  the  choice  between  drinking 
and  abstaining,  and  knowing  that  by  drinking  he  im- 
perils himself  and  imperils  others,  while  by  abstaining 
he  secures  safety  for  himself,  and  sets  a  safe  example 
to  others,  why  should  any  man  be  in  doubt  as  to  his 
personal  duty  ?  " 

That  argument  throughout  is  in  striking  contrast  to 
the  prating  of  those  who  claim  the  right  to  take  moral 
risks  under  the  guise  of Christian  liberty." 

On  the  tobacco  question  Dr.  Trumbull  was  equally 
clear.  He  recognized  the  social  attractiveness  of  the 
smoking  habit,  but  he  believed  that  no  social  gain 
from  that  habit  could  possibly  compensate  a  smoker 
for  his  loss  in  personal  cleanliness.  He  admitted  the 
soothing,  benumbing  influence  of  tobacco,  but  he  in- 
sisted that  ''the  average  American  youth  needs  all 
the  nerves  and  all  the  brain-power  that  he  possesses 
to  enable  him  to  know  his  place  and  to  fill  it.  He 
ought  not  to  have  his  sensibilities  deadened.  He 
ought  not  to  be  satisfied  with  his  present  attainments. 
If  he  has  failed  in  his  day's  work,  or  in  his  day's 
hunting  for  work,  he  ought  not  to  take  an  opiate  or 
narcotic,  and  lull  his  sensibilities  to  rest  over  his 
failure.  He  ought  to  face  the  facts  with  unclouded 
vision  and  tense  nerves,  and  determine  on  better 
things  for  to-morrow.  .  .  . 

"  Tobacco-using  holds  back  many  young  men  of 
wealth  and  intellect  and  good  moral  character  from 


Determining  the  Border  Li?ies  425 


doing  as  well  as  they  can  do, — doing  a  great  deal 
better  and  a  great  deal  more  than  they  do  do.  They 
sit  and  smoke,  and  think  how  much  they  have  done, 
and  how  much  they  intend  to  do,  and  how  pleasant 
it  is  to  live  without  doing  all  the  time,  and — they  take 
another  cigar,  and  are  more  than  satisfied  with  doing 
nothing  more." 

Then,  too,  tobacco  brings  a  man  into  bondage. 
He  must  find  time  for  the  indulgence  of  the  habit, 
often  thereby  putting  himself  in  the  worst  company 
and  in  the  most  disagreable  places,  or  he  must  make 
himself  bad  company,  and  the  place  where  he  is  dis- 
agreeable. ...  If  he  is  at  a  hotel,  or  on  a  railroad 
train,  he  must  seek  the  place  of  tobacco-users,  which 
is  often  a  filthy  apartment  where  are  sure  to  be  found 
the  vilest  occupants  of  the  establishment,  whoever 
else  is  there." 

In  his  arguments  against  the  use  of  tobacco,  Dr. 
Trumbull  gave  chief  prominence  to  the  considerations 
that  would  appeal  to  the  finer  instincts  of  the  true 
man.  He  sought  to  show  how  unnatural  is  the 
smoking  habit,  how  unclean,  how  enervating;  and 
what  slavery  a  young  man  enters  when  he  does  his 
best  to  learn  to  smoke.  It  was  the  common-sense 
view  of  personal  purity  and  efficiency  that  he  pressed. 
Aside  from  debatable  questions  of  morals,  aside  from 
any  possible  question  of  health,  and  without  regard 
to  the  money  cost  of  the  smoking  habit,  why  should 
young  men  ever  enter  such  a  bondage? 

"Is  it  desirable  for  them  to  form  this  habit,  when 
its  indulgence  would  inevitably  destroy  their  personal 
purity  and  cleanliness,  would  make  them  measurably 


426  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


offensive  to  the  more  refined  and  sensitive  of  those 
who  are  about  them,  would  tend  to  deaden  their  sensi- 
bihties,  and  to  diminish  and  hmit  their  nervous  force 
and  activity,  and  would  bring  them  into  a  bondage 
which  shuts  them  away  from  much  that  is  refining 
and  elevating,  and  surrounds  them  with  influences 
which  are  deteriorating,  and  companionships  which 
are  objectionable  ?  " 

As  a  boy  in  his  Stonington  home  Henry  Trumbull 
was  in  a  community  where  border  lines  in  these 
popular  practises  were  not  sharply  drawn.  He  was 
accustomed  to  play  cards  there,  but  from  his  own 
observations  of  the  effect  of  card  playing  on  the  "best 
people  "  of  his  acquaintance  he  gave  up  the  practise, 
even  before  he  united  with  the  church.  The  climax 
was  reached  when,  one  evening,  as  he  was  engaged 
in  a  game  with  other  young  fellows,  a  heavy  thunder- 
storm came  on.  As  the  tumult  overhead  increased, 
one  of  the  players  dropped  his  cards  with  the  remark, 
"  I  guess  we  had  better  quit  until  the  storm  is  over. 
I  wouldn't  want  to  be  struck  by  lightning  while  play- 
ing cards." 

"Why  not?"  asked  Trumbull  in  astonishment  **If 
card  playing  is  all  right,  I'd  just  as  soon  be  struck 
playing  cards  as  at  any  other  time." 

The  frightened  player  looked  confused,  and  replied 
lamely ;  but  none  of  the  others,  with  the  exception  of 
Trumbull,  were  willing  to  go  on  with  the  game  while 
the  lightning  flashed  so  dangerously  near.  Henry 
had  played  his  last  game  of  cards.  If  other  fellows 
whose  moral  standards  he  did  not  especially  respect 
believed  that  card-playing  was  an  unworthy  death- 


Determining  the  Border  Lilies  427 


hour  occupation,  how  could  he  justify  his  own  con- 
tinuance in  that  form  of  amusement? 

In  his  maturer  years,  when  he  came  to  formulate 
the  principle  by  which  card-playing  and  other  games 
of  chance  must  be  judged,  he  put  it  in  this  way  : 

"  '  Chance '  in  the  sense  of  '  luck  '  is  not  a  factor  in 
life,  and  it  ought  not  to  be  recognized  as  existing 
among  the  things  which  are  or  which  may  be. 
Counting  on  it,  in  this  sense,  is  inevitably  harmful 
both  in  fact  and  in  tendency.  Chance  as  an  unfore- 
seen happening  is  a  great  reality.  Chance  as  cause- 
less luck,  or  as  a  favoring  or  non-favoring  fortune,  is 
an  absurdity — or  worse.  .  .  . 

It  can  hardly  be  said,  on  the  one  hand,  that  the 
shuffling  of  cards  or  the  rattling  of  dice,  in  the  gam- 
bling-room, the  parlor,  or  the  nursery,  is  intended,  or 
can  be  construed,  as  a  reverent  appeal  to  God  for  his 
intervention  between  the  contestants  [as  in  the  serious 
Oriental  casting  of  the  lot].  On  the  other  hand,  it 
must  be  admitted  that  it  is  injurious  to  one's  spiritual 
nature  and  to  one's  mental  fiber  to  indulge  the  feeling 
that  there  is  any  such  thing  in  the  universe  as  bald 
luck,  or  as  causeless  chance,  on  which  one  can 
depend  for  success — in  labor  or  in  recreation. 

"  Moreover,  it  tends  to  lessen  one's  energy,  and  to 
diminish  his  reliance  in  his  own  honest  exertions,  if 
the  conviction  grows  on  him  that  his  luck  may  at  any 
moment  counterbalance  the  gain  of  his  best  en- 
deavors, or  the  loss  through  his  shiftless  neglect." 

It  will  be  seen  that  Dr.  Trumbull  dealt  in  all  these 
questions  with  the  more  subtle  causes  and  effects,  so 
often  overlooked  in  ethics  and  in  casuistry  because 


428  Henry  Clay  Trzcmbitll 


working  so  quietly  in  the  deeps  of  human  nature,  and 
not  making  much  stir  upon  the  surface.  Not  the 
grosser  outbreakings,  but  the  border-hne  beginnings 
in  the  spirit,  the  inner  tendency  to  explore  dangerous, 
alluring  territory,  and  what  could  come  of  such  a  state 
of  mind  and  course  of  Hfe — these  were  the  subjects  of 
his  close  scrutiny.  The  social  dance  had  its  attractive- 
ness, indeed ;  but  among  its  numerous  disadvantages 
was  one  with  a  moral  bearing  of  most  serious  im- 
port,— the  exceptional  opportunity  given  in  the 
social  dance  for  a  young  man  of  not  the  highest 
moral  character  to  be  temporarily,  at  least,  intimate 
with  a  pure-minded  and  unsuspicious  young  woman, 
and  possibly  to  pave  the  way  for  subsequent  intimacy. 
In  this  the  social  dance  is  different  from  any  other 
form  of  recreation  in  vogue  in  social  life." 

In  his  consideration  of  the  theater  and  theater-go- 
ing, Dr.  Trumbull  was  keenly  conscious  of  the  toler- 
ance with  which  this  question  is  passed  over  by 
Christian  leaders.  He  was  not  willing  to  base  his 
convictions  as  to  the  moral  standing  of  the  whole 
theater  question  on  objections,  or  favoring  facts,  which 
might  be  counted  exceptional  or  partial.  To  him  the 
"  radical  and  sweeping  objection  to  the  institution  of 
the  theater  at  its  best"  was  that  "the  profession  of  an 
actor  is  in  and  of  itself  unnatural,  baleful,  and  radi- 
cally and  universally  wrong.  .  .  .  On  the  face  of  it,  the 
profession  of  an  actor  stands  all  by  itself  in  demanding 
of  its  votary  that  his  main  purpose  and  endeavor  shall 
be  to  seem  what  he  is  not,  to  appear  something  else 
than  his  real  self;  and  herein  lies  the  essential  and 
irremediable  evil  of  this  profession.  .  .  .  An  actor 


Deter7nining  the  Border  Lines  429 


may,  indeed,  have  a  great  deal  of  personality.  It  is, 
in  fact,  hardly  possible  for  one  to  be  a  successful 
actor  without  a  large  degree  of  personality ;  as  it  is 
also  true  that  rare  ability,  and  sometimes  command- 
ing genius,  enters  into  the  power  of  the  successful 
actor.  But  all  this  personality,  all  this  ability,  all  this 
genius,  must  be  devoted  to  giving  the  actor  the  ap- 
pearance of  another  self  than  his  own  in  the  pro- 
fession to  which  he  has  consecrated  his  best  powers ; 
and  this  course  inevitably  tends  to  the  limiting  and 
cramping  of  his  personality,  and  to  the  unworthy  em- 
ployment and  fettering  of  his  genius  and  ability. 

"  That  which  might  have  been  a  power  for  good  in 
creation,  or  in  original  performance,  is  given  wholly 
to  imitation  or  simulation ;  and  this  too,  more  com- 
monly, in  the  sphere  of  the  lower  nature  rather  than 
of  the  higher,  or  at  all  events  in  the  lower  as  well  as 
in  the  higher ;  for  the  essential  requirements  of  dra- 
matic action  call  for  the  portrayal  of  the  more  violent 
and  unworthy  passions,  rather  than  of  the  gentler  and 
worthier  virtues.  A  man  who  is,  perhaps,  at  heart  a 
good  and  a  true  man,  and  who  has  exceptional  capa- 
bilities of  good,  devotes  himself  to  seeming  a  bad 
man,  and  to  exhibiting  the  semblance  of  the  vilest 
passions  or  of  the  most  abhorrent  crimes.  How  can 
such  a  course  fail  of  injury  to  a  noble  nature?  Even 
if  it  in  no  degree  lowers  the  tone  of  that  nature,  it 
inevitably  restrains  it  within  limitations  all  unworthy 
of  its  powers  and  destiny.  .  .  .  There  are  unquestion- 
ably worthy  men  and  women  in  the  actors'  profes- 
sion ;  but  is  any  one  of  them  in  a  worthy  profession? 
Ought  any  pure  or  noble  man  or  woman  to  be  in  a 


430  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


profession  which  demands  a  life  of  simulation  and  of 
unselfing?  Is  not  even  entering  the  doors  of  a  public 
theater  for  the  witnessing  of  the  performances  of  pro- 
fessional actors  to  give  to  this  unworthy  institution 
unjustifiable  countenance  and  support?" 

That  argument  was  from  no  merely  academic  point 
of  view,  for  actors  of  prominence  and  dramatic  critics 
of  wide  experience  were  at  one  with  Dr.  Trumbull  in 
this.  It  is  a  fine  moral  line  that  he  draws,  but  that 
was  exactly  his  purpose  in  all  his  ethical  dividing 
lines, — not  a  line  flung  down  with  a  whitewash  brush, 
to  be  obliterated  by  the  first  heavy  shower. 

You  may  find  Dr.  Trumbull's  border-line  principle 
of  thought  and  action  put  in  a  single  sentence  in  his 
"  Border  Lines  in  the  Field  of  Doubtful  Practices," 
in  the  chapter  on  the  "  Gain  of  the  Higher  Side."  To 
live  out  that  sentence  might  be  gloriously  revolu- 
tionary in  many  a  sub-standard  life  : 

"  In  a  question  of  morals,  where  it  is  on  the  one 
hand  self-denial  and  on  the  other  hand  self-indulgence, 
the  higher  side  is  always  the  better,  whether  it  be  the 
side  of  danger  or  of  safety." 


CORRECTING  COMMON  ERRORS  ABOUT 
BIBLE  TRUTHS 


He  who  would  study  the  Bible  must  bear  in 
mind  that  it  is  not  the  books  of  the  Bible  that 
were  themselves  inspired,  but  that  it  was  the 
writers  of  these  books  whom  God  inspired  for 
their  writing.  "Men  spake  from  God,  being 
moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost."  One  man  wrote 
at  one  time  and  in  one  style,  and  another  man 
wrote  at  another  time  and  in  another  style.  One 
wrote  in  poetic  imagery,  and  another  in  didactic 
prose.  A  perception  of  these  differences  is  es- 
sential to  an  understanding  of  the  truths  thus 
declared  from  God.  But  the  main  purpose  of 
this  sacred  record  of  inspired  teachings — who- 
ever was  the  writer,  and  whensoever  and  how- 
soever he  wrote — is  the  instruction  and  guidance 
and  inspiration  of  their  believing  student. 

It  is  well  enough  to  become  closely  familiar 
with  the  structure  and  contents  of  the  different 
books  of  the  Bible,  and  to  memorize  as  many 
portions  of  it  as  there  is  time  and  mental  strength 
for  ;  but  all  this  is  but  an  incident  to  true  Bible 
study,  and  not  the  thing  itself  Bible  study  is 
for  the  purpose  of  gaining  impulses  and  helps  to 
the  Christian  life.  In  view  of  this  truth,  Bible 
study  is,  indeed,  a  duty  and  a  privilege  to  the 
Christian  believer  ;  but  there  is  a  great  deal  of 
time  wasted  in  what  is  called  Bible  study,  yet 
which  is  nothing  of  the  sort. — Hints  on  Bible 
Study. 


CHAPTER  XXVII 


CORRECTING  COM.AION  ERRORS  ABOUT  BIBLE  TRUTHS 

Dr.  Trumbull's  general  knowledge  of  the  Bible  was 
gained  by  the  plain  and  simple  path  of  daily,  consecu- 
tive Bible  reading.  His  specific  knowledge  of  words 
and  passages,  characters  and  episodes,  facts  and  prin- 
ciples, he  dug  out  with  veritable  toil,  for  the  benefit  of 
his  children,  his  Bible  class,  his  teachers'-meeting,  and 
the  readers  of  The  Sunday  School  Times. 

Year  after  year  for  more  than  a  quarter  century  he 
was  facing  week  by  week  the  earnest  or  trifling  or 
puzzled,  and  often  incredulous,  questionings  of  men 
and  women  who  looked  at  the  Bible  from  every 
standpoint  known  to  the  human  mind.  And  whether 
he  answered  such  questions  in  his  paper,  or  in  his 
Bible  class,  or  in  the  teachers'-meeting  of  his  Sun- 
day-school, he  was  ever  proclaiming  the  Bible  as  a 
book  of  principles — not  of  rules  ;  as  meaning  what  it 
means,  and  not  necessarily  what  it  says.  No  book 
in  the  world,'"  he  wrote,  "  is  so  safe  a  guide  for  any 
and  for  all  as  the  Bible ;  yet  it  is  not  enough  to  know 
the  mere  words  of  the  Bible,  if  we  would  profit  by 
this  Book  of  books.  It  demands  study  and  a  sincere 
prayerful  desire  to  learn  its  meaning.  .  .  .  Most  of  us 
have  heard,  from  childhood,  the  statement  or  declara- 
tion, as  if  from  the  Bible,  '  Spare  the  rod  and  spoil 

433 


434  Hen7y  Clay  Trwnbull 


the  child.'  As  commonly  understood  this  '  text '  is 
supposed  to  mean,  or  to  teach,  that  a  loving  father  or 
mother  must  now  and  then  thrash  or  flog  a  boy  or  girl 
with  a  '  rod'  or  a  switch  or  a  shingle  or  a  strap. . .  .  Yet 
there  is  no  such  injunction,  or  proverb,  in  the  Bible 
as  *  Spare  the  rod  and  spoil  the  child.'  Perhaps  the 
proverb  that  is  as  likely  as  any  other  to  have  been  per- 
verted into  an  encouragement  to  misguided  parents  to 
show  their  bad  temper  in  this  way  is  this :  *  He  that 
spareth  his  rod  hateth  his  son.  But  he  that  loveth 
his  son  chasteneth  him  meantime '  (Prov.  1 3  :  24). 

"But  this  does  not  justify  flogging  a  boy  or  girl 
merely  in  order  to  show  that  the  child  is  not  hated. 
One  meaning  for  the  Bible  word  translated  '  rod '  is 
*'  sceptre  ' ;  it  stands  for  *  authority,'  '  rule,'  *  govern- 
ment,' *  control.'  A  parent  is  set  of  God  to  represent 
God  in  love  toward  his  children.  In  this  spirit  a 
parent  is  to  *  chasten.'  To  *  chasten  '  is  to  train,  or  to 
*  bring  up,'  not  necessarily  to  flog  or  to  thrash." 

Dr.  Trumbull  insisted,  too,  that  it  is  important  to 
know  who  said  the  words  that  one  reads  in  the  Scrip- 
tures. In  support  of  the  contention  that  nothing  is 
so  dear  to  a  man  as  his  own  life,  a  well  known  Bible 
scholar  once  said  to  him  : 

"  All  that  a  man  hath  will  he  give  for  his  life." 

"  Where  did  you  get  that  idea  ?  "  asked  Trumbull. 

"  From  the  Bible,"  was  the  answer. 

"Who  said  it?" 

"  Really  I  don't  remember." 

"  Well,  it  was  Satan  who  said  it.  It  was  a  lie  then, 
and  it  is  a  lie  now.  The  Lord  proved  it  was  a  lie ; 
and  here  you  are  quoting  that  old  lie  of  Satan  as  if  it 


Correcting  Commo7i  Errors  435 


were  the  truth,  just  because  the  words  as  you  quote 
them  are  in  the  Bible !  " 

It  was  a  part  of  Dr.  Trumbull's  mission  to  banish 
popular  misconceptions  of  Bible  truth,  and  to  replace 
them  with  what  he  found  in  the  Bible  itself.  Did  any 
beheve  that  Law  is  the  religion  of  the  Old  Testament, 
and  Love  the  religion  of  the  New  ?  Yet  it  might  with 
equal  fairness  and  propriety  be  asserted  that  *  Love  is 
the  religion  of  the  Old  Testament,  and  Law  is  the 
religion  of  the  New.'  Both  statements  are  true  in  a 
sense;  neither  statement  is  complete  by  itself,  or  as 
ordinarily  understood.  In  God's  government  and  in 
God's  revelation  of  himself,  love  is  in  all  his  law,  and 
all  his  law  is  in  love.  Whoever  fails  to  recognize  this 
truth,  fails  to  understand  the  Bible  as  a  revelation  of 
God,  in  both  the  Old  Testament  and  the  New." 

So  persistent  is  popular  tradition  or  impression,  that 
some  of  the  most  familiar  Bible  texts  and  incidents 
have  lost  their  original  significance  in  their  misappli- 
cation. The  difficulty  is  not  with  the  Bible,  but  with 
the  careless  student.  Dr.  Trumbull  took  everj^  op- 
portunity to  startle  custom-blinded  misinterpreters  of 
the  Scriptures  by  confronting  them  with  the  Word 
itself  Such  texts  as  "Jehovah  watch  between  me 
and  thee  when  we  are  absent  one  from  another ;  " 
"  Work  out  your  own  salvation  with  fear  and  trem- 
bling;" "Ye  therefore  shall  be  perfect,  as  your 
heavenly  Father  is  perfect;"  "Blessed  are  the  pure 
in  heart :  for  they  shall  see  God ; "  "  Let  him  deny 
himself,  and  take  up  his  cross,  and  follow  me; "  "  Ye 
must  be  born  again  !  " — these  and  others  familiarly 
quoted  he  believed  were  popularly  misunderstood. 


43 6  He7iry  Clay  Tritmbull 


"  Mizpah  "  was  no  bond  of  friendship,  but  a  *'  cove- 
nant of  peaceful  disagreement "  between  Jacob  and 
Laban,  and  the  watch  tower  "  Mizpah,"  marked  the 
boundary  over  which  the  Lord  was  asked  to  guard 
against  the  trespass  of  either  over  that  Hne.  A  fairly- 
careful  reading  of  the  Bible  passage  should  make 
that  fact  clear  to  the  average  student. 

To  work  out "  one's  salvation  is  commonly  taken 
to  mean  that  "  the  sinner  has  a  share  in  the  work  of 
securing  his  own  salvation."  But  salvation  is  Christ's 
work.  What  then  can  the  passage  mean  ?  Dr. 
Trumbull  points  to  the  Word  itself,  and  it  is  seen  that 
Paul  is  writing  to  disciples  of  Christ  in  Philippi. 
**  He  is  telling  saved  sinners  what  to  do  with  their 
salvation,  and  how  to  make  it  tell  for  their  Saviour's 
glory,  and  in  the  discharge  of  their  obvious  duty 
toward  him  and  toward  those  whom  he  loves.  ...  It  is 
as  though  Paul  had  said,  '  Manifest  your  salvation,' 
*  evidence  your  salvation,'  *  bring  up  your  salvation 
from  below  the  surface,  so  that  it  may  be  seen  and 
felt  by  those  who  see  you,  and  feel  you,  and  know 
you  and  your  joy  and  your  faith.'  " 

Dr.  Trumbull  did  not  believe  that  Bible  "perfec- 
tion "  meant  sinlessness,  or  moral  faultlessness." 
He  held  that  the  word  perfect  or  perfection  or  per- 
fectly, as  found  in  the  English  Bible,  never  means  a 
mere  state  of  sinlessness,  but  rather  a  state  of  whole- 
ness, completeness,  entirety.  David's  soldiers  who 
came  with  him  to  Hebron  "  with  a  perfect  heart " 
were  not  men  without  sin,  but  "  whole-hearted  "  fol- 
lowers of  the  king.  When  Jesus  said  to  the  rich 
young  man,  "  If  thou  wouldest  be  perfect,"  it  was 


Correcting  Common  Errors  437 


clearly  meant  "  if  thou  wouldest  complete  thy  work 
of  preparation,  if  thou  wouldest  be  thorough  in  this 
thing."  It  is  one-sidedness  that  is  warned  against  in 
the  Sermon  on  the  Mount.  "  It  is  impartiality  or 
entirety  that  is  enjoined.  It  is  wholeness  of  vision, 
instead  of  a  squint  of  the  eye,  that  is  commended.  .  .  . 
The  disciples  of  Jesus  are  to  be  loving  toward  all,  as 
the  Father  of  all  is  loving  toward  all." 

Nor  should  purity  of  heart  be  counted  as  demand- 
ing sinlessness.  If,  indeed,  "  the  pure  in  heart " 
means  only  the  sinless,  the  stainless, — those  who  are 
free  from  every  moral  imperfection,  not  only  in  act, 
but  in  thought, — then  every  human  being  is  shut  out 
from  the  vision  or  perception  of  God.  But  in  the  Old 
and  in  the  New  Testament,  heart "  usually  means 
mind."  Pure,"  as  ordinarily  used  in  Hebrew,  in 
Greek,  and  in  English,  means  "  unalloyed,"  "  clean," 
"  clear,"  "  simple,"  "  single."  "  It  is  applied,  in  the 
Bible,  to  virgin  gold,  to  a  clean  table  or  candlestick, 
to  flawless  glass,  to  unmixed  oil,  and  to  water  that  is 
only  water.  It  does  not  necessarily  involve  a  moral 
element.  It  never  stands  for  absolute  sinlessness  of 
being.  .  .  .  The  pure  in  heart  are  those  whose  minds, 
or  very  selves,  are  single,  simple,  undivided  in  aim 
and  purpose.  ...  *  Blessed  are  the  single-minded,  for 
they  shall  perceive  God.'  Blessed  are  those  whose 
whole  being  is  intent  on  seeing  him  who  is  invisible." 

Again,  "  cross-bearing,"  in  the  popular  use  of  that 
term,  and  the  biblical  idea  of  "  bearing  the  cross,"  are 
two  very  different  conceptions.  In  the  New  Testa- 
ment, "  taking  up  the  cross "  was  the  surrender  of 
one's  life  to  Christ's  service  ;  "  cross-bearing  "  is  popu- 


438  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


larly  considered  to  be  the  bearing  of  burdens  for 
Christ's  sake.  The  condemned  criminal  bearing  his 
cross  was  recognized  by  that  fact  as  one  appointed 
to  die. 

Whoever  would  follow  Jesus  must  be  ready  to  give 
up  his  life  for  him,  must  follow  him  with  the  cross  on 
his  shoulder.  Cross-bearing,  in  Jesus'  thought,  was 
life-surrender.  "  There  is,  of  course,  no  such  thing  as 
'little  crosses'  in  one's  daily  life-course,  although  one 
often  hears  such  things  spoken  of  If  a  cross  is  a 
cross  at  all,  it  is  big  enough  to  hang  on,  to  die  on.  If 
it  is  not  large  enough  for  that,  it  is  not  a  cross  in  the 
Bible  sense,  or  in  the  classical  sense,  of  that  term." 

Concerning  the  new  birth,  Dr.  Trumbull  spoke  or 
wrote  with  profound  conviction,  with  great  boldness, 
even  when  he  was  quite  sure  he  would  be  misunder- 
stood, and  always  with  the  consciousness  of  what  tre- 
mendous meaning  his  exegesis  might  carry  to  troubled 
souls.  For  many  years  in  his  own  Christian  life  he 
was  haunted  with  doubt  concerning  the  actuality  of 
the  new  birth  in  his  own  experience.  Had  he  been 
born  again  ?  How  could  he  know  whether  he  had  or 
not?  What  could  he  do  about  it?  Such  questions 
beset  him,  as  they  did  and  do  beset  others.  Afid  just 
here  the  Bible  itself,  when  permitted  to  do  so,  came 
to  the  rescue.  Trumbull  saw  therein  that  Jesus  had 
never  commanded  an  individual  soul  to  "be  born 
again."  No  inspired  disciple  of  his  gave  any  such 
command.  What  Jesus  said  to  Nicodemus  was  not 
a  command  to  a  duty  which  Nicodemus  must  himself 
perform,  but  the  statement  of  a  fact  or  truth. 

"No  man  can  'born'  himself    Turning  to  God, 


Correcting  Common  Errors  439 


submitting  to  God — that  is  a  duty.  Being  made  a 
new  man,  being  spiritually  renewed,  being  given  a 
clearer  sight, — that  is  a  blessing  from  above.  Turn- 
ing, trusting, — that  is  man's  part.  Renewing,  regen- 
erating,— that  is  God's  part.  If  we  will  do  our  part, 
God  can  be  relied  upon  to  do  his  part.  To  doubt  this 
is  wrong  and  unjustifiable.  .  .  . 

"Whatever  view  is  held  of  the  spiritual  change 
spoken  of  in  the  words  of  Jesus,  'Ye  must  be  born 
again,'  of  one  thing  we  may  be  sure, — they  are  not 
meant  to  teach  any  person  that  he  is  to  wait  outside 
the  loving  service  of  Christ  until  some  great  change 
is  wrought  in  him  whereby  he  becomes  personally 
conscious  that  he  has  another  nature  than  before. 
The  reference  is  clearly  to  God's  part,  not  man's,  in  the 
blessing  of  salvation." 

In  searching  for  Bible  meanings,  Dr.  Trumbull 
sedulously  kept  in  mind  the  Oriental  viewpoint.  He 
realized  that  our  Western  literalism  and  our  compara- 
tive dullness  in  perceiving  the  symbolism  which  so 
colors  all  Oriental  thought,  were  to  be  guarded  against 
in  Bible  study.  For  example,  in  commenting  on  the 
promise,  "If  ye  shall  ask  me  anything  in  my  name, 
that  will  I  do,"  he  wrote : 

"  What  is  here  meant  by  'in  my  name  '?  What,  in- 
deed, is  one's  name,  as  the  term  is  used  in  the  Bible, 
in  the  Old  Testament  and  the  New,  and  in  primitive 
thought  and  customs  generally?  One's  name,  as 
thus  spoken  of,  is  not  a  mere  designation  or  label ;  it 
is  one's  truest  self  or  personality.  It  enwraps  one's 
very  being  as  a  covering  and  protection,  as  the  flag  of 
one's  country  enwraps  and  shields  its  every  citizen 


440  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


when  endangered.  Thus  *  the  name  of  the  Lord  is  a 
strong  tower:  the  righteous  runneth  into  it,  and  is 
safe.'  .  .  .  Similarly,  one  who  is  in  Christ  is  sure  of 
acceptance  with  Christ  and  with  God,  as  being  in  the 
common  name,  or  personality,  of  the  Father,  of  the 
Son,  and  of  the  disciple;  or  as  Jesus  expresses  it:  'I 
am  in  my  Father,  and  ye  in  me,  and  I  in  you.'  That 
is  being  *in  his  name,'  living  'in  his  name,'  praying  *in 
his  name.' " 

Dr.  Trumbull's  study  of  the  name  is  not  here  elab- 
orated, but  simply  shown  in  its  conclusions,  based 
upon  the  Oriental  significance  of  "name." 

In  nothing,  however,  was  Dr.  Trumbull's  Bible 
study  and  teaching  more  distinctive  than  in  its  insist- 
ence upon  the  great  fact  that  the  Bible  is  no  mere 
book  of  rules,  but  a  book  of  eternal,  universal,  irre- 
futable principles.  In  that  book  man  is  not  told  in  so 
many  words  precisely  what  he  is  to  do  in  every  moral 
issue.  But  he  who  really  wants  to  know  and  to  do 
just  what  is  right  in  any  given  case,  has  the  responsi- 
bility laid  on  him  of  finding  out  for  himself  how  the 
principle  bears  upon  that  case,  and  then  of  acting 
accordingly.  .  .  .  The  Bible  enunciates  the  principle 
that  ought  in  every  case  to  be  a  man's  standard  of 
action,  while  it  does  not  propose  to  supply  a  man  with 
a  specific  rule  for  every  particular  case  before  him  for 
decision.  .  .  . 

"Although  this  is  unmistakably  the  truth  concerning 
the  Bible,  it  is  by  no  means  generally  recognized  as 
the  truth ;  and  because  of  the  misconceptions  of  the 
purpose  and  methods  of  the  Bible  so  far,  men  are 
constantly  misleading  themselves  in  courses  of  con- 


Correcting  Common  Errors  441 


duct  through  their  conviction  that  the  Bible  does  or 
does  not  specifically  pass  upon  those  courses  of  con- 
duct for  all  time  and  for  every  person.  They  per- 
ceive, for  example,  that  a  certain  course  of  conduct 
seems,  at  the  present  time,  to  tend  to  the  injury'  of  the 
one  who  pursues  it,  and  of  others  who  are  affected  by 
its  influence.  This  causes  them  to  ask  whether  or 
not  the  course  be  a  sinful  one.  Going  to  the  Bible 
with  an  idea  that  that  book  is  a  book  of  specific  rules 
of  conduct,  instead  of  a  book  of  principles  from  which 
rules  of  conduct  are  to  be  deduced,  they  look  for 
some  explicit  forbidding  of  the  course  in  question, 
and,  not  finding  that  there,  they  decide  that  the 
conduct  itself  cannot  properly  be  counted  sinful. 
Their  mistake  is  not  as  to  what  is  in  the  Bible,  but 
as  to  what  the  Bible  is.  They  suppose  the  Bible  to 
be  a  book  of  rules,  when  it  really  is  a  book  of  prin- 
ciples illustrated  by  historic  applications  of  principles 
to  particular  cases. 

'*  What  Bible  texts  explicitly  forbid  the  counterfeit- 
ing of  government  money;  the  forging  of  another's 
name;  the  cutting  of  public  telegraph  wires;  the  dis- 
tilling of  whiskey  without  a  permit;  the  'watering* 
of  the  capital  stock  of  the  company  which  one  con- 
trols, or  of  the  milk  which  one  offers  for  sale  ?  There 
is  a  great  deal  of  downright  rascality  current  in  the 
community  at  the  present  day  which  can  be  shown  to 
be  immoral  and  sinful  by  a  reference  to  the  principles 
enunciated  in  the  Bible,  but  which  are  not  declared  to 
be  a  sin  by  any  specific  rule  of  the  Bible  text.  And 
this  is  because  the  Bible  is  a  book  of  principles  instead 
of  a  book  of  rules.  .  .  . 


442  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


"  What  a  relief  it  would  be  to  most  minds  to  have 
a  Bible  that  would  tell  a  man  specifically  just  what  is 
right,  and  just  what  is  wrong  in  every  imaginable  cri- 
sis of  affairs;  just  what  he  may  do,  and  just  what  he 
must  not  do,  in  every  sphere  of  human  conduct! 

"If  only  the  Bible  were  thus  divinely  arranged,  and 
a  full  index  of  subjects  were  added  to  it,  how  simple 
would  be  the  matter  of  learning  one's  duty  in  life  !  .  .  . 
A  mere  child  could  find  the  references  when  the  index 
showed  the  page  of  the  rule  in  the  premises.  This 
would  seem,  to  the  average  mind,  such  a  gain  over 
the  tedious  process  of  hunting  out  the  Bible  principle 
involved,  and  then  studying  over  its  application  to 
the  case  in  question.  There  is  a  difference  in  these 
two  ways ;  but  the  one  way  is  that  which  man 
would  prefer,  while  he  other  is  that  which  God  sees 
to  be  best." 


SHOWING  RESERVE  POWER  TOWARDS 
LIFE'S  CLOSE 


Being  tired  of  life  is  always  a  selfish  feeling  : 
for  no  man  is  tired  of  living  on  the  ground  that 
there  is  nothing  to  be  done  by  him  for  others. 
He  who  lives  wholly  for  himself  may,  indeed, 
feel  that  he  can  no  longer  please  himself ;  but 
he  who  lives  for  others  is  sure  to  see  so  much 
yet  to  be  done  in  the  line  of  his  life-work  that 
he  is  not  ready  to  stop  living  by  his  own  choice. 

The  higher  a  man's  ideal  of  desirable  attain- 
ment for  himself  or  for  others,  the  higher  is 
likely  to  be  his  and  their  measure  of  actual  at- 
tainment ;  yet  at  the  same  time  the  less  likely 
he  is  to  be  satisfied  with  the  measure  of  attain- 
ment thus  secured.  In  other  words,  the  larger 
prominence  a  man  gives  to  the  work  yet  to  be 
done,  the  lesser  prominence  he  gives  to  that 
which  is  done. 

Rest  in  work  is  better  than  rest  from  work. 
Rest  from  work  is  mere  inaction.  There  is  no 
real  gain  in  that.  One  grows  tired  in  it,  if  not 
of  it.  But  rest  in  work  is  refreshing.  One 
gains  strength  and  power  as  he  works  while  thus 
resting.  The  rest  which  Jesus  gives  to  those 
who  seek  it  in  his  service,  is  rest  under  his 
yoke,  not  rest  away  from  it.  Not  until  the  be- 
liever is  doing  more  than  now,  can  he  have  re- 
freshing rest  in  work.  A  Christian's  rest  is 
found  under  the  yoke  and  in  the  furrow. — 
From  editorial  paragraphs. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII 


SHOWING    RESERVE    POWER  TOWARDS  LIFE's  CLOSE 

Dr.  Trumbull  had  always  been  systematic  in  pro- 
viding matter  for  certain  departments  of  his  paper 
on  stated  days  of  the  week,  but  now  this  pressure 
of  periodical  writing  began  to  wear  upon  him,  espe- 
cially when  his  writings  must  be  produced  whether 
he  had  the  strength  for  the  work  or  not.  Every  week 
he  wrote  his  answers  to  correspondents, — "  Notes  on 
Open  Letters," — his  "Illustrative  Apphcations,"  and 
numerous  editorial  paragraphs  and  leading  editorials, 
meanwhile  keeping  up  a  considerable  correspondence 
without  the  aid  of  a  stenographer.  For  several  years 
he  had  been  at  work  on  a  study  which  grew  out  of 
his  "  Blood  Covenant "  studies,  an  examination  of  the 
threshold  covenant  as  a  rite  of  deep  significance  in 
ancient  and  in  later  times. 

Early  in  1895  he  was  trying  to  finish  the  manu- 
script for  a  book  on  that  theme,  was  writing  out  the 
earher  chapters  of  his  "War  Memories,"  and  pre- 
paring a  book  on  the  nature  and  scope  of  prayer. 
All  this  was  in  addition  to  regular  attendance  upon 
the  Wednesday  evening  service  of  the  Walnut  Street 
Presbyterian  Church,  the  leading  of  its  teachers'-meet- 
ing  on  Saturday  evenings,  the  teaching  of  its  adult 
Bible  class  on  Sunday  afternoons,  occasional  sermons 

445 


446  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


in  churches  of  various  denominations,  and  a  ministry 
to  individuals  which  no  man  can  measure. 

In  June  Dr.  Trumbull  was  prostrated  with  what 
seemed  like  a  stroke  of  paralysis.  For  a  week  he 
was  not  allowed  to  read  or  to  write.  Early  in  July, 
under  the  advice  of  his  physician,  and  at  the  sugges- 
tion of  his  long-time  friend,  Mr.  John  Wanamaker,  he 
sailed  with  his  son  for  Europe,  to  seek  the  benefits 
of  the  waters  and  medical  treatment  at  Karlsbad. 

Of  that  journey  and  of  his  father's  bearing  in  the 
midst  of  its  privileges  and  its  difficulties  Mr.  Charles 
Gallaudet  Trumbull  writes: 

"Although  forced  to  go  abroad  by  the  most  serious 
break-down  in  health  since  his  illness  of  1881  (when 
he  visited  the  East),  and  starting  enfeebled  in  body 
and  greatly  depressed  in  mind,  his  enthusiastic  inter- 
est in  everynew  sight  and  scene  put  to  shame  younger 
ones  who  knew  not  a  tithe  as  much,  and  who  had 
therefore  the  more  reason  to  be  eager  for  fresh  knowl- 
edge. That  was  characteristic  of  his  advancing  years 
and  breadth  of  vision:  the  older  he  grew,  the  more 
interested  he  seemed  to  become  in  anything  new  that 
he  might  see  or  learn.  More  than  one  young  person 
learned  from  Dr.  Trumbull  that  healthy,  alert  enthu- 
siasm is  not  necessarily  a  sign  of  ignorance,  nor  an 
emotion  to  be  concealed  or  suppressed. 

"Toward  the  close  of  that  journey  I  learned  that 
there  were  three  points  of  interest  in  Europe  that  had 
impressed  my  father,  at  the  time  of  his  earlier  jour- 
ney, above  all  else :  Raphael's  Sistine  Madonna,  the 
Tomb  of  Napoleon,  and  the  little  Sainte  Chapelle  in 
Paris, — the  latter  for  its  stained  glass.    We  went  to- 


Showing  Reserve  Power  447 


gether  in  Dresden  to  see  the  Sistine  Madonna.  My 
father's  child-loving  eye  caught  first  what  I  had  failed 
to  notice;  a  little  child  among  the  visitors  who  had 
seemingly  forgotten  all  else  in  gazing,  spellbound,  into 
the  eyes  of  the  IMother  on  the  canvas.  The  painting 
interested  me,  but  failed  to  get  hold  of  me  profoundly, 
I  not  being  as  wide-awake  just  then  as  that  httle  child 
had  been  to  the  masterpiece  that  was  before  us.  I 
told  my  father  frankly  that  I  was  disappointed  in  it. 
He  looked  non-committal,  and  said  little. 

''A  few  weeks  later  we  went  together  in  Paris  to 
the  exquisite  little  sanctuary,  the  Sainte  Chapelle,  not 
known  or  visited  as  much  as  some  of  the  more  famous 
sights  in  that  capital.  The  brilliant  flames  of  color 
in  its  stained  glass  windows,  ranked  by  masters  among 
the  best  in  the  world,  burned  their  way  into  my  soul,  as 
they  had  into  my  father's,  and  there  was  no  stint  to 
my  admiration  there.  And  when  we  entered  the  Hotel 
des  Invalides,  and  stood  under  the  dome  looking  down 
into  the  vault  that  holds  the  marble  sarcophagus  of 
Bonaparte,  surrounded  by  the  names  of  the  battles  that 
are  by-words  of  history,  and  realized  that  the  earthly 
shell  of  the  man  himself  was  there,  I  again  shared  with 
my  father,  as  well  as  a  civilian  could  with  a  soldier,  the 
impressions  that  sweep  over  one  in  that  place. 

"  When  I  had  told  him  so,  he  then  told  me  that  he 
was  glad;  that  he  had  suspended  judgment,  so  to 
speak,  at  Dresden,  but  that  if  the  tomb  of  Napoleon 
had  similarly  failed  to  make  its  impression  upon  me, 
then  he  would  have  felt  troubled.  That  was  a  way  he 
had,  of  giving  every  one  more  than  one  chance  to 
prove  or  redeem  himself 


448  He7iry  Clay  Trumbull 


"  Dr.  Trumbull's  friends  have  often  commented  on 
the  peculiar,  intuitive  power  of  his  that  seemed  to 
enable  him  to  go  straight  for  that  which  he  was  after, 
no  matter  how  difficult  the  search  might  be.  If  it 
were  a  line  of  verse  somewhere  in  a  volume  of  five 
hundred  pages  or  more,  his  keen  eyes  would  scan, 
with  lightning  rapidity,  page  after  page  until  the 
quarry  was  hunted  down,  and  usually  in  an  amazingly 
short  time.  This  power,  after  all,  was  not  so  mysteri- 
ous as  it  was  a  common-sense  perception  of  where  the 
thing  he  was  after  was  likely  to  be,  and  concentration 
of  eyesight  and  thought  while  hunting  for  it.  Even 
when  obliged  to  give  up  a  search  temporarily,  he 
kept  the  matter  in  the  background  of  his  conscious- 
ness, so  that  if  it  unexpectedly  crossed  his  line  of 
vision  he  would  not  be  caught  napping. 

"  When  in  London  he  took  me  with  him  to  visit 
the  British  Museum,  and  we  waited  in  one  of  its 
scores  of  apartments  until  his  card  should  have  been 
taken  in.  While  at  work,  just  before  breaking  down 
in  health,  on  his  exhaustive  volume,  '  The  Threshold 
Covenant,'  Dr.  Trumbull  had  learned  of  the  existence 
of  a  certain  tablet  or  panel  on  which  was  a  primitive 
carving  that  was  of  fundamental  importance  in  his  par- 
ticular researches  for  that  volume,  and  he  believed  this 
to  be  in  the  British  Museum.  But  to  find  a  bit  of  stone 
of  that  sort  in  the  British  Museum  would  be  like  find- 
ing the  proverbial  needle  in  a  haystack.  As  we 
waited  together  that  day  my  father  passed  from  case 
to  case,  alert  and  enthusiastic  as  ever,  and  in  a  mo- 
ment I  heard  an  ejaculation  come  excitedly  from  his 
lips.  He  had  found  his  tablet !  Some  people  would  call 


Showing  Reserve  Power  449 


that  merely  *  lucky/  failing  to  recognize  how  few  men 
would  have  been  willing  even  to  expect  to  find  what 
they  needed  in  a  few  spare  moments  in  that  London 
labyrinth.  Moments  were  never  *  spare '  to  Dr.  Trum- 
bull; therefore  opportunity  had  hard  work  to  slip  by 
him. 

"Another's  need  was  always  his  call  to  action.  He 
had  set  out,  broken  in  health,  in  my  care.  But  when, 
in  Germany,  within  twenty-four  hours  of  landing,  a 
slight  cold  attacked  a  nerve  in  my  face  and  produced 
a  startling  sort  of  temporary  paralysis,  he  seemed  to 
find  fresh  vigor  and  strength  in  the  demand  that  this 
made  upon  him,  and  at  once  he  was  the  loving,  tire- 
less nurse.  I  never  knew  until  afterwards  how  this 
unexpected  trial  had  almost  prostrated  him,  nor  how, 
alone  in  a  strange  land,  sick  and  weak  himself,  with  a 
sick  son  now  dependent  upon  him,  he  flung  himself 
in  utter  discouragement  and  helplessness  upon  the 
heavenly  Father,  and  found  in  Him  the  strength  and 
comfort  his  need  of  which  he  did  not  dare  to  confess 
to  me. 

"  On  the  steamer  was  a  fine-lookincf  bie  athlete 
from  Boston,  of  whom  deck-gossip  had  it  that  he  was 
a  prize-fighter.  One  afternoon  I  noticed  that  he  and 
my  father  were  sitting  together  on  deck,  and  that 
conversation  did  not  seem  to  lag.  The  next  day  the 
prize-fighter  said  to  me,  *  I  had  a  very  interesting  con- 
versation with  your  father  yesterday  afternoon.'  Then, 
after  a  pause :  *  Do  you  know,  I'd  always  thought  }'our 
father  was  a  viinistcr  !'  The  family  used  to  joke  the 
Doctor  a  good  deal  about  that  remark;  but  it  was 
very  evident  that  he  had  improved  an  opportunity  to 


Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


show  his  man  that  there  was  not  necessarily  a  bar- 
rier between  a  Doctor  of  Divinity  and  a  prize-fighter, 
after  all. 

"  Karlsbad  had  been  the  particular  goal  of  that 
journey,  and  after  five  weeks  or  so  of  its  special  treat- 
ment and  '  cure,'  the  trip  southwest  to  Lucerne  marked 
the  beginning  of  the  homeward  journey.  Those  who 
have  stayed  in  Karlsbad  know  its  physically  depress- 
ing effects.  That  is  one  of  the  first  results  one 
notices  ;  as  a  rule  the  greatest  benefit  does  not  appear 
until  the  winteraftera  summer  sojourn  there.  There- 
fore it  was  not  surprising  that,  with  face  once  more  set 
toward  home,  yet  with  thousands  of  miles  batween, 
and  the  physical  let-down  of  the  Karlsbad  treatment,  Dr. 
Trumbull  should  have  been  perilously  near  complete 
collapse  in  Lucerne.  The  danger  of  this  grew  increas- 
ingly evident  to  those  who  were  with  him,  and  he  him- 
self seemed  really  to  be  unable  to  rally.  Yet  he 
must  rally,  if  he  was  to  live:  and  there  was  no  reason 
why  he  should  not  live. 

"  In  after  years  he  used  to  take  a  good  deal  of  en- 
joyment in  telling,  as  he  put  it,  '  how  Charley  saved 
my  life  at  Lucerne.'  Whatever  saving  of  life  was  done 
came  about,  under  God,  through  his  own  superb  will- 
power in  mastering  himself  at  a  time  when  most  men 
would  have  found  it  physically  impossible  to  do  so. 
Only  a  will  of  steel  tempered  through  a  life-time  of 
self-control  could  have  met  the  test  and  stood  the 
strain.  And  the  incident  showed,  too,  that  willing- 
ness which  he  never  outgrew,  to  act  upon  sugges- 
tions from  his  inferiors. 

"  He  was  at  the  lowest  ebb  of  depression,  and  had 


Showing  Reserve  Power  451 


said  to  me  repeatedly  that  he  feared  he  could  not  live 
to  see  home  again.  Even  that  was  not  said  in  com- 
plaint, but  as  accepting  a  fact  that  he  must  recognize. 
Confident  as  I  was  that  this  depression  came  only 
from  discouragement,  I  finally  mustered  up  courage 
to  say  :  *  Well,  father,  if  you  intend  to  die  here  in 
Lucerne,  you  can  do  so;  no  one  can  prevent  it.  But 
there  is  no  need  for  you  to  die,  except  your  own  de- 
termination to  do  so.  If  you  will  only  recognize  that 
you  need  not  die,  you  will  no-t  die.  It  rests  solely 
with  you.' 

"  That  was  putting  the  responsibility  for  his  death 
upon  himself,  not  upon  God;  and  that  was  a  respon- 
sibility he  was  unwilling  to  take.  Without  saying  a 
word,  like  the  soldier  he  was,  he  evidently  wrenched 
himself  back  into  command  of  himself,  and  from  that 
point  steadily  won 'the  fight  over  himself  It  was  as 
impossible  a  victory,  *  humanly  speaking,'  as  any  of 
his  long  list  of  victories ;  and  he  was  the  only  man  I 
have  ever  known  who  had  enough  reserve  power, 
spiritual  and  physical,  to  meet  such  a  crisis." 

On  his  way  home  from  Karlsbad,  when  Dr.  Trum- 
bull was  in  London,  in  the  early  autumn,  he  dined 
one  evening  with  Professor  A.  H.  Sayce  of  Oxford, 
the  eminent  Orientalist.  On  that  occasion  he  had  an 
experience  which,  to  say  the  least,  was  a  pleasant  sur- 
prise to  him. 

Professor  Sayce  had  invited  him  and  his  son  to 
meet  Miss  Agnes  Grace  Weld,  a  niece  and  ward 
of  Lord  Tennyson.  Dr.  Trumbull  was  much  im- 
pressed with  Miss  Weld's  culture.  He  enjoyed  his 
conversation  with  her,  but  supposed  that  she  knew 


452  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


nothing  of  him  beyond  the  fact  that  he  was  an 
American.  Presently,  however,  Miss  Weld  surprised 
him  by  saying  : 

"  Dr.  Trumbull,  I've  been  very  much  interested  in 
your  book  on  Kadesh-barnea." 

When  he  answered  that  it  was  a  pleasure  to  know 
that  any  study  of  his  had  interested  her,  she  continued  : 
Canon  Cook  [editor  of  the  Speakers'  Commentary] 
loaned  me  his  copy,  and  I  became  so  much  interested 
in  it  that  I  copied  it  off  entire." 

"Copied  it  off!"  exclaimed  Trumbull,  in  astonish- 
ment, for  the  book  had  nearly  five  hundred  pages. 

**  Yes,  copied  it  all  off" 

"And  made  a  trace  of  both  the  maps,"  added  Pro- 
fessor Sayce. 

"Then,"  said  Trumbull,  deferentially,  "you  prob- 
ably know  it  better  than  I  do." 

Soon  after  this  he  sent  to  Miss  Weld  several  of  his 
books,  which  she  did  not  need  to  copy. 

Upon  his  return  to  America  Dr.  Trumbull  was  in 
better  health,  although  by  no  means  wholly  restored. 
From  that  time  to  the  close  of  his  life  he  was  never 
free  from  illness  for  any  considerable  period,  yet  his 
trained  will  enabled  him  to  overcome  his  feelings  and 
to  work  on  in  spite  of  physical  weakness.  He  yielded 
to  the  orders  of  his  physician,  and  sought  unaccus- 
tomed rest  at  one  time  or  another  in  the  summer  home 
of  his  friend  and  neighbor,  Clarence  H.  Clark,  at  the 
Isles  of  Shoals,  or  with  his  daughter  Mrs.  Wattles  and 
her  sons  in  their  Denver  home. 

Service,  not  inaction,  was  life  to  Henry  Clay  Trum- 
bull.   He  was  mindful  of  the  years  in  his  tireless  use 


Showing  Reserve  Power 


453 


of  time,  and  not  in  any  willingness  to  spare  himself. 
That  he  would  not  do.  He  hated  vacations,  believing 
that  a  man  who  got  eight  hours'  solid  rest  in  every 
twenty-four  had  all  the  relaxation  that  was  good  for 
him,  and  that  any  man  of  well-ordered  life  and  habits 
could  not  possibly  need  three  months'  outing  in  every 
year. 

"  I  get  my  vacation,"  he  used  to  say,  "  sitting  on 
my  porch  these  summer  afternoons  watching  my 
neighbors  come  home  in  ambulances  from  their  sum- 
mer vacations."  But  while  personally  disHking  weeks 
or  months  of  emptiness  and  idleness  and  the  deterior- 
ating effect  of  the  "  going-away  "  fad,  he  saw  to  it  that 
his  employees  had  their  outings  on  the  liberal  basis 
of  ample  time  and  full  pay.  On  his  enforced  summer 
journeys  he  would  write  for  his  paper  as  much  as  his 
strength  would  permit,  and  everywhere  he  went  his 
quick  eye  and  his  loving  heart  would  search  out  needy 
souls  to  whom  he  might  say  a  word. 

In  1896  he  finished  his  book  on  "The  Threshold 
Covenant,"  which  was  designed  to  '*show  the  begin- 
ning of  religious  rites,  by  which  man  evidenced  a 
belief,  however  obtained,  in  the  possibility  of  covenant 
relations  between  God  and  man ;  and  the  gradual 
development  of  those  rites,  with  the  progress  of  the 
race  toward  a  higher  degree  of  civilization  and  enlight- 
enment." 

While  the  book  was  primarily  for  students,  one  of 
its  conclusions  in  particular  is  of  deep  interest  to  ever>^ 
reader  of  the  Bible.  Dr.  Trumbull  shows  that  in  the 
Hebrew  passover  God  did  not  institute  a  new  rite, 
but  "then  and  there  emphasized  the  meaning  and 


454  Henry  Clay  Tritmbidl 


sacredness  of  a  rite  already  familiar  to  Orientals." 
Furthermore,  the  term  ''passover,"  he  contends,  does 
not  mean,  in  connection  with  the  Hebrew  exodus,  a 
passing  by  on  the  Lord's  part,  but  a  covenanting  anew 
with  the  Hebrews,  by  Jehovah's  passing  over,  or  cross- 
ing over,  the  blood-stained  threshold  into  their  homes, 
while  the  messenger  of  death  should  go  into  the  houses 
of  Jehovah's  enemies  to  claim  the  firstborn. 

That  this  view  of  the  passover  is  by  no  means  fan- 
ciful will  appear  from  a  study  of  ''The  Threshold 
Covenant."  No  less  a  scholar  in  Talmudic  and  rab- 
binical lore  than  the  Rev.  Dr.  Marcus  Jastrow  said  of 
it,  Especially  interesting,  and  undoubtedly  correct, 
is  your  interpretation  of  Exodus  12  :  23,  according  to 
which  the  Lord  passes  over  the  threshold  in  order  to 
visit  the  Iraelitish  house,  and  will  not  allow  the 
destroyer  to  enter."  And  still  other  scholars  in  the 
field  of  primitive  religions  received  ''The  Threshold 
Covenant"  with  respectful  recognition  of  its  thorough- 
ness and  value. 

Quite  different  from  this  scholarly  treatise  were  two 
books  that  Dr.  Trumbull  brought  out  in  the  same 
year  with  the  study  of  the  threshold  covenant, — 
"Prayer:  Its  Nature  and  Scope,"  and  *'In  Tribula- 
tion." Of  prayer  he  felt  the  need  of  definition,  and 
he  very  well  knew  that  tribulation  was  misunderstood, 
and  its  discipline  lost,  by  many  who  might  gain  by  a 
different  attitude  toward  it.  He  realized,  too,  that 
those  in  tribulation  needed  comfort  and  sympathy 
from  one  who  had  known  how  hard  and  how  profit- 
able are  the  lessons  learned  in  that  school. 

To  one  who  has  defined  prayer  loosely  and  used  it 


S J  lowing  Reserve  Power  455 


lightly,  Dr.  Trumbull's  book  will  come  with  spiritual 
surprises.  Prayer  means  a  great  deal  more  than 
supplication  and  intercession.  In  the  Hebrew  of  the 
Old  Testament  and  in  the  Greek  of  the  New,  there  are 
quite  a  number  of  different  words  translated,  in  our 
English  Bible,  by  the  one  term  'prayer.'  The  meanings 
of  these  words  severally  are,  therefore,  all  included  in 
the  Bible  idea  of  prayer.  These  meanings  are  :  con- 
fession, supplication,  entreaty,  desire,  intercession, 
thanksgiving,  adoration,  praise,  worship,  meditation, 
outpouring  of  self,  communion  ;  and  unless  prayer  is 
recognized  as  covering  all  these  significations,  it  falls 
short  of  what  is  fairly  within  the  limits  of  its  fullest 
sense." 

Dr.  Trumbull  shows  that  the  prayer-cry  is  univer- 
sal, that  prayer  yet  has  its  limitations,  for  **  the  right 
of  prayer  is  obviously  limited  to  those  who  turn  to- 
ward God  as  his  creatures,  and  to  the  asking  of  such 
gifts  as  God  is  understood  to  be  willing  to  bestow.  .  .  . 
In  the  very  nature  of  things,  it  is  clear  that  no  child 
of  God  has  a  right  to  pray  for  that  which  he  has  no 
right  to  desire.  .  .  .  Hence  it  is  clear  that  a  child  of 
God  has  a  right  to  pray  unqualifiedly  only  for  those 
things  which  he  knows  to  be  for  good  ;  while  for 
those  things  which  he  thinks  may  be  for  good,  but 
about  which  he  cannot  be  sure,  he  is  privileged  to 
pray  with  the  qualification  in  his  prayer  that  God  will 
grant  them  if  they  are  for  good,  and  withhold  them 
if  they  are  not  so." 

One  cannot  read  the  book  without  discovering  that 
prayer  is  no  diffusive  elemental  power  that  holds  its 
magic  at  the  beck  and  call  of  every  whim  of  our  needy 


456  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


natures,  but  is  rather  a  means  of  communion  with 
God,  by  which  man,  under  well-defined  conditions, 
may  become  the  beneficiary  of  the  divine  gifts. 

In  all  Dr,  Trumbull's  devotional  writings  there  was 
simplicity  and  naturalness,  and  back  of  all,  the  eager- 
ness for  definition  and  clearness  as  the  first  need  in 
getting  at  truth.  When  writing  of  tribulation,  he 
must  first  be  sure  that  he  and  his  reader  knew  what 
he  was  writing  about.  Tribulation  is  our  normal 
condition  in  our  present  state,"  because  tribulation  is 
a  process  of  "separation  for  purposes  of  cleansing,  of 
purifying,  of  refining."  Shall  we  then  shrink  from 
tribulation  as  it  comes  to  us,  or  shall  we  welcome  it 
and  profit  by  it  ?  And  having  accepted  it  as  a  train- 
ing agency,  how  shall  we  go  about  getting  the  utmost 
out  of  it?  That  was  Dr.  Trumbull's  way  of  brushing 
away  the  foolish  shadows  that  hang  over  our  thought 
of  the  things  that  are  hard  to  bear.  He  was  a  past- 
master  in  the  art  of  allowing  God  to  thresh  and  win- 
now out  the  chaff  from  the  wheat  in  his  ow^n  life,  and 
his  chapters,  "Improving  Chastisement,"  "Suffering 
as  a  Duty,"  "  Toiling  Hopelessly,"  "  After  the  Wreck," 
and  others  like  them,  make  very  plain  the  sub-title  of 
his  book,  "The  Blessing  of  Trials." 

Dr.  Trumbull  never  posed.  He  was  careful,  ex- 
tremely so,  as  to  the  form  of  his  utterances,  not  with 
any  purpose  of  drawing  attention  to  himself  as  a 
writer,  but  solely  in  order  to  make  his  thought  vivid 
and  clear  to  others.  Those  who  read  his  writings  feel 
that  they  know  the  man, — and  they  do.  His  words, 
his  works,  his  personality,  were  close  kin.  He  dif- 
fused by  his  presence  and  his  printed  page  a  sense  of 


Showing  Reserve  Power 


457 


wholesome  manliness,  an  atmosphere  of  sane  convic- 
tion and  high  enthusiasm. 

Among  his  friends  was  one  whose  devotional 
writings  have  been  more  widely  read  than  those  of 
any  other  in  this  generation,  the  Rev.  Dr.  J.  R. 
Miller,  editor  of  the  Presbyterian  Board  publications. 

*'Dr.  Trumbull's  method  of  work  was  my  ideal," 
writes  Dr.  Miller.  He  had  a  way  of  going  right  to 
the  heart  of  things  and  saying  just  what  he  wanted  to 
say  in  the  most  luminous  fashion.  He  never  wasted 
words  in  efforts  to  say  fine  things,  but  he  did  seek 
always  to  put  the  gist  of  the  matter  in  as  terse  and 
vigorous  phrase  as  possible.  ...  I  never  knew  a  man 
more  humble  even  in  his  most  confident  utterances. 
There  was  something  in  his  tone  and  manner  which 
revealed  his  consciousness  of  the  divine  presence. 
He  did  not  know  that  his  face  was  shining, — if  he 
had  known  it,  he  would  not  have  been  half  the 
prophet  that  he  was. 

Dr.  Trumbull  was  never  a  discourager,  but 
always  an  encourager.  He  always  saw  the  best  that 
was  in  others.  He  had  an  eye  even  for  the  very 
smallest  beginning  of  good,  of  worth,  of  possible 
restoration  in  men.  When  he  saw  those  who  were 
far  down  in  sin,  he  did  not  look  upon  them  as  hope- 
less,— he  saw  in  them  the  possibiHties  of  divine 
beauty  and  glory,  and  had  an  eager  longing  to  tr>^ 
to  develop  these  possibilities. 

"  He  bcHeved  that  a  man's  true  friend  is  one  who 
would  make  the  man  do  his  best,  wlio  would  call  out 
the  noblest  powers  and  qualities  in  him.  He  did  not 
take  people's  burdens,  when  it  was  infinitely  better 


458 


He7iry  Clay  Trumbull 


that  they  should  bear  the  burdens  themselves.  He 
did  not  try  to  help  people  in  such  a  way  as  to  leave 
them  less  able  to  meet  the  battle  of  life  again  to- 
morrow. The  whole  dream  and  ideal  of  his  friend- 
ship was  to  help  people  in  the  deepest,  highest, 
divinest  way." 

There  were  others  among  his  brother  editors  who 
had  a  like  affection  for  Dr.  Trumbull,  and  who  valued 
his  views  of  truth  and  ways  of  dealing  with  it.  One 
of  these  was  the  Rev.  Dr.  H.  L.  Wayland,  for 
some  years  editor  of  the  National  Baptist,  and  a  cor- 
respondent of  The  Examiner.  Dr.  Wayland  was  a 
frequent  attendant  at  Trumbull's  Bible  Class  and 
teachers' -meeting,  where  the  sparks  were  sure  to  fly 
when  the  two  were  together,  each  a  man  of  originality 
and  mother  wit,  and  each  highly  esteeming  the  other. 
Dr.  Wayland  was  familiar  with  his  friend's  habits  of 
work,  and  he  feared  that  Trumbull  would  completely 
break  down.  It  was  not  his  way  to  express  that  fear 
in  commonplace  phrase,  as  his  after-dinner  hearers 
and  week-by-week  readers  will  remember  concerning 
anything  Dr.  Wayland  put  into  words.  Accordingly, 
in  The  Examiner  of  August  13,  1896,  appeared,  under 
the  heading  of  Notes  of  a  Rambler,"  Dr.  Wayland's 
letter  for  that  week  on    A  Victim  of  Excess  "  : 

**The  victim  I  now  refer  to  is  the  hardest- worked  man 
in  Philadelphia,  Dr.  Henry  Clay  Trumbull,  the  editor 
of  The  Sunday  School  Times.  I  suppose  we  all  have 
one  vice  (as  many  of  us  have  one  virtue),  and  perpetual 
labor  is  to  him  what  rum  and  opium  and  gambling 
and  smoking  and  chewing  and  horse  racing  are  to 
some,  and  the  seashore  and  the  Adirondacks  to  others. 


Showing  Reserve  Power  459 


'•About  a  year  ago  Dr.  Trumbull  was  ordered  by 
his  physicians  an  absolute  rest ;  so  he  went  to  Karls- 
bad, having  first  been  forbidden  ever^'-thing  that  he 
wanted  to  eat  and  drink,  and  bidden  to  eat  and  drink 
everything  he  didn't  want ;  he  returned  in  the  fall, 
and  for  a  time  gave  some  little  signs  of  amendment ; 
but  alas  !  original  depravity  is  hard  to  kill ;  soon  he 
was  at  it  a^ain.  .  .  .  But  penalty,  though  it  move  with 
leaden  feet,  usually  gets  there,  and  now  he  is  again 
prostrate  ;  but  his  physicians,  among  whom  is  Dr. 
Pepper,  a  prince  in  diagnosis,  tell  him  that  there  is 
absolutely  no  injury  of  any  organ  whatever,  that  rest 
is  all  that  is  needed. 

Perhaps  there  is  a  lesson  here.  If  he  had  been 
addicted  to  rum  and  tobacco,  if  he  had  been,  for  the 
last  fifty  years,  every  day  hollowing  and  thinning  the 
walls  of  his  heart,  and  subjecting  every  internal  organ 
to  infamous  abuse,  I  should  now  be  writing  his  obitu- 
ary instead  of  urging  him  to  give  himself  half  a 
chance  for  fifteen  years  more  of  labor.  To  him  and 
to  Dr.  Conwell  and  to  a  few  others  I  am  disposed  to 
say,  *  Remember  what  the  Master  has  said  about  the 
chief  seats.  Do  not  be  so  eager  to  go  and  get  all  the 
best  places  in  the  other  world  ;  do  not  be  avaricious  ; 
do  not  be  a  monopolist ;  do  not  try  to  do  all  the 
work,  so  as  to  leave  nothing  for  anybody  else  ;  do 
not  subject  yourselves  to  the  unpleasantness  of  having 
it  said  to  you  by  the  great  Father  of  us  all,  when  you 
prematurely  appear  in  his  presence,  "Why  arc  you 
here?  I  did  not  send  for  you.  Punctuality  and 
obedience  consist  in  being  neither  after  nor  before 
your  allotted  time."  ' 


460  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


But,  unfortunately,  all  these  exhortations  will  be 
laid  to  heart  by  the  man  who  never  knew  what  it 
was  to  work,  who  started  tired,  and  who  scrupulously 
avoided  exertion.  He  will  take  this  article  to  himself, 
and  will  read  it  to  his  wife,  and  will  say,  'Ah,  my 
dear,  don't  let  me  undermine  my  constitution  as  dear 
Dr.  Trumbull  has  done  by  inordinate  effort.'  The 
laziest  man,  the  man  who  never  did  a  stroke  of  work, 
who  is  quietly  and  uncomplainingly  supported  by  his 
wife,  is  always  the  man  who  sits  on  the  piazza  of  a 
Sunday  morning  and  sings  in  vociferous  tones,  '  Wel- 
come, sweet  day  of  rest'  " 


AS  A  MAN  AMONG  MEN 


None  of  us  are  fully  understood  in  this  life. 
None  of  us  really  want  to  be. 

Jesus  says  that  he  chose  and  appointed  us  to 
go  and  bear  fruit.  Have  we  understood  that  ? 
Many  of  us  have  supposed  that  we  chose  him  to 
help  us  in  this  world  and  to  save  us  in  the  next. 
Perhaps  our  creed  needs  revising — unless  we 
can  get  a  new  Bible. 

Once  a  friend,  always  a  friend.  Most  of  us 
are  ready  to  apply  this  truth  to  one  who  claims 
to  be  our  friend  ;  but  we  are  not  so  ready  to 
apply  it  to  ourselves  as  a  test  of  our  friendship. 
If  we  claim  to  be  a  true  friend  to  another,  our 
friendship-love  ought  not  to  pivot  on  his  fidelity, 
but  on  ours.  Even  though  he  fail  us,  we  ought 
not  to  fail  him  or  fail  ourselves.  If  we  were 
ever  his  friend,  we  shall  ever  be  his  friend. 
Nothing  that  he  does  or  fails  to  do,  ought  to 
cause  us  to  be  untrue. — From  editorial  para- 
graphs. 


CHAPTER  XXIX 


AS  A  MAN   AMONG  MEN 

Into  one  of  the  settlements  of  the  San  Joaquin 
valley  a  traveler  came  one  evening,  and  stopped  for 
the  night  at  a  little  hotel.  Among  the  guests  was 
a  venerable  Dunkard  minister,  with  whom  he  fell  into 
conversation,  and  their  talk  turned  to  men  and  things 
of  the  East,  whence  both  had  come, — the  minister 
by  slow  progression  through  years  of  sei-vice  by  the 
way,  the  other  in  recent  days  from  his  Eastern 
home. 

Early  in  the  morning  the  traveler  was  awakened  by 
the  sound  of  voices  rising  from  the  hotel  offices.  His 
dawning  consciousness  told  him  that  his  evening  com- 
panion, the  aged  minister,  was  speaking. 

"It  is  twenty-seven  years.  I  haven't  missed  a 
week.  I  can  turn  right  back  and  tell  what  every  les- 
son was  about,  and  what  he  taught.  I  never  set  eyes 
on  him,  and  yet  I  always  felt  I  knew  just  what  manner 
of  man  he  was, — slight,  nervous,  forceful,  energetic. 
That  man  up  there  knows  Clay  Trumbull  well.  He 
lived  right  by  him,  and  heard  him  teach.  Wonderful 
teacher,  wonderful  man  !  A  great  power  for  good 
was  Clay  Trumbull." 

The  man  "up  there  "  was  wide  awake  now, — awake 
enough  to  ask  himself  the  question  that  many  another 

463 


464  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


might  well  ask  :  ''What  are  others  like  myself  doing 
to  keep  alive  the  flame,  who  had  received  the  torch 
from  the  teacher's  hand,  who  had  enjoyed  the  privi- 
lege of  knowing  him  face  to  face?"  And  the  trav- 
eler, who  was  in  earlier  days  the  teacher  of .  his 
teacher's  son,  was  awake  to  a  new  sense  of  duty  with 
the  dawn  of  the  new  day. 

The  sense  of  close  personal  intimacy  cherished  by 
the  Dunkard  minister,  and  the  impulse  that  aroused 
the  teacher  to  a  sense  of  his  obligations  to  others 
because  of  what  he  himself  had  learned,  were  every- 
where to  be  found  in  the  path  of  Henry  Clay  Trum- 
bull's activities.  He  came  to  close  quarters, ;  he 
penetrated  the  shell  of  conventional  reluctance  to 
let  one's  self  out ;  he  put  personality  into  written 
or  spoken  word  ;  and  his  words  and  his  presence 
made  one  stand  straighter  and  see  visions. 

It  is  not  enough  to  say  that  he  interested  men, 
influenced  them,  helped  them.  He  startled  them, 
charmed  them,  made  them  forget  self,  brought  them, 
wide  awake,  face  to  face  with  the  glory  of  living  the 
life  of  a  man  in  the  kingdom  of  God.  Not  that  he 
was  consciously  doing  this  in  realization  of  his  power. 
His  hold  upon  men  was  essential  in  its  origin  and 
inevitable  in  its  exercise  ;  and  the  finer  the  man,  the 
surer  the  hold,  and  the  keener  the  appreciation  of 
that  rare  and  empowering  personality.  John  R. 
Mott,  whose  work  as  Secretary  of  the  World's  Chris- 
tian Student  Federation  has  revolutionized  the  modern 
student  attitude  toward  Bible  study  and  Christian  ser- 
vice, was  very  close  to  Dr.  Trumbull  and  was  loved 
and  honored  by  him  for  his  character  and  achieve- 


As  a  Man  Among  Me7i  465 


ments,  and  was  counted  by  him  as  within  the  inner 
circle  of  his  dearest  friendships. 

**In  his  relationship  with  men,"  says  Mr.  Mott, 
"  Dr.  Trumbull  impressed  me  as  being  more  like 
Christ  than  any  man  I  have  ever  known.  He  com- 
bined a  life  of  unceasing  activity  with  a  habit  of  mind 
which  reflected  and  meditated  deeply  on  the  meaning 
of  everything ;  tremendous  intensity  with  calm  of 
spirit ;  tenderness  with  the  most  virile  courage  ;  mar- 
velous power  of  sympathy  with  absolute  faithfulness  in 
dealing  with  sin  and  error ;  rich  and  varied  knowledge 
and  experience  and  great  resourcefulness  with  childlike 
humility  and  complete  dependence  on  God;  joyousness 
of  spirit  with  an  underlying  sense  of  the  seriousness  of 
life  and  its  needs,  opportunities  and  choices. 

"To  my  mind  the  dominant  note  in  his  life,  as  in 
that  of  Henry  Drummond,  was  reality.  His  words 
and  example  w^ere  a  constant  and  effective  protest 
against  all  pretense,  sophistr)^,  equivocation,  and 
superficiality.  Thus  religion  seemed  natural  and 
attractive  in  his  life.  Traits  like  these,  and  a  con- 
sistent life-habit  of  being  true  to  the  highest  office  of 
friendship  and  Christian  discipleship — namely,  that  of 
communicating  to  others  the  deepest  and  most  truly 
abiding  things — made  him  the  most  skilful  and  help- 
ful individual  worker  for  souls  I  have  ever  met." 

Dr.  Trumbull  sought  common  ground  of  agreement 
with  others,  rather  than  points  of  difference.  No  one 
had  any  doubt  whatever  as  to  his  moral  or  religious 
standards.  He  was  too  outspoken  for  that.  Yet  he 
had  a  way  of  expressing  his  principles  which  did  not 
antagonize  others. 


466  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


To  the  chaplain  of  the  Illinois  commander  of  the 
Loyal  Legion,  the  Rev.  Duncan  C.  Milner,  who  was 
trying  to  stop  the  supplying  of  liquors  paid  for  by  the 
commandery  at  its  meetings,  he  wrote  : 

A  chaplain  among  soldiers  in  time  of  war  or  of  peace  must 
expect  to  find  things  going  on  that  he  would  like  to  have 
changed.  He  is,  in  a  certain  sense,  a  missionary  among  those 
whom  he  would  raise  to  a  higher  standard  and  level.  His 
exainple  should  ever  be  on  the  right  side.  His  counsel  also 
should  be,  when  it  is  sought,  or  when  he  can  properly  give  it 
But  of  anything  in  the  way  of  formal  protest  or  fault-findmg  I 
have  ever  been  shy.  I  have  felt  that  as  a  chaplain  I  had  a 
duty  to  make  myself  a  welcome  guest, — loved  for  my  spirit, 
my  work,  and  my  words. 

About  paying  for  liquor  bills,  that  is  another  matter.  As 
to  that,  I  would  say  frankly  to  those  having  the  matter  in 
charge,  that  my  principles  forbade  my  sharing  in  that.  Yet 
to  make  it  clear  that  it  was  not  niggardliness  that  influenced 
me,  I  should  insist  on  giving  a  larger  sum  than  I  seemed  thus 
to  save  to  provide  flowers,  or  fruit,  or  confectionery.  I  would 
feel  it  to  be  a  shame  and  a  wrong  not  to  have  my  principles 
and  my  way  of  showing  them  commend  themselves  to  those 
who  do  differently. 

Dr.  Trumbull's  scholarly  pursuits  brought  him  into 
pleasant  relations  with  many  learned  Jews.  Differ- 
ences in  religious  belief  did  not  hinder  these  rela- 
tions on  either  side.  There  was  common  ground  for 
all  in  biblical  study  and  research,  and  in  much  of 
Bible  truth,  as  each  saw  it.  One  evening  he  was 
deeply  touched  by  an  incident  that  occurred  at  a 
gathering  of  rabbis  and  chief  men  of  the  synagogues 
in  Philadelphia  in  the  Rodeph  Shalom  Synagogue 
on  a  special  occasion  when  he  was  in  attendance  at 
the  service. 


As  a  Man  Among  Me7i  467 


Rabbi  Marcus  Jastrow  spied  him  in  the  congrega- 
tion, sent  a  messenger  to  him,  and  had  him  conducted 
to  the  platform.  Presently  the  rabbi  asked  him  if  he 
would  offer  prayer  and  pronounce  the  benediction  at 
the  close  of  the  ser\dce,  and  assured  him  that  all  would 
be  gratified  thereby. 

As  the  meeting  closed,  Rabbi  Jastrow  introduced 
him  as  his  friend,  one  who,  although  not  of  their 
faith,  was  a  well-known  friend  of  his  people  and  "a 
lover  of  their  literature."  Then  Dr.  Trumbull,  hav- 
ing in  mind  Dr.  Jastrow's  long  term  of  ser\ice, 
offered  thanks  **for  God's  oreserv'ing  care  and  minis- 
tering  love  since  first  this  man  of  God  came  to  be 
among  this  people  of  God,"  and  as  the  waiting  con- 
gregation stood,  he  raised  his  hands,  and  pronounced 
the  benediction,  ''The  Lord  bless  thee,  and  keep  thee; 
the  Lord  make  his  face  shine  upon  thee,  and  be  gra- 
cious unto  thee  ;  the  Lord  lift  up  his  countenance 
upon  thee,  and  give  thee  peace.    Amen  and  amen." 

Dr.  Trumbull  was  the  first  president  of  the  Oriental 
Club  of  Philadelphia,  and  often  entertained  the  club 
and  its  guests.  When  the  American  Oriental  Society 
met  in  Philadelphia,  he  entertained  the  members  at 
his  house.  It  was  a  large  gathering  of  distinguished 
scholars.  Several  native  Syrians,  men  and  women, 
were  there  in  Oriental  costume.  A  Syrian  met  the 
guests  as  they  entered  and  proffered  them  iced  sher- 
bet. Another  Syrian  stood  ready  to  pour  water  on 
their  hands  froni  a  tankard  over  an  Oriental  brass 
bowl,  while  another  stood  ready  to  wipe  their  hands 
on  a  towel  with  which  he  was  girded. 

During  the  supper  time  Oriental  music  was  played 


468  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


in  the  hall-way,  with  the  peculiar  droning  sound  of 
the  reeds  played  through  the  nostrils.  The  Hon. 
Wayne  MacVeagh  called  his  host's  attention  to  the 
penetrating  sound,  and  asked  the  name  of  the  instru- 
ment. 

"  That  is  the  shepherd's  pipe,"  said  Trumbull. 
"  It's  the  same  as  was  played  in  David's  day,  and  has 
been  ever  since  then  in  the  fields  around  Bethlehem." 

"Then,"  said  Mr.  MacVeagh, — wincing  under  the 
sound,  "  I  can  understand  why  Saul  threw  his  javelin 
at  David  as  he  played." 

Many  orthodox  Jews  were  at  that  gathering,  and 
these  their  host  had  in  mind  when  he  planned  the 
supper.  Strictly  Kosher  (ceremonially  clean)  food 
was  secured  from  Jewish  provisioners,  and  prepared 
by  Jewish  cooks.  This  food  was  on  pink-edged 
dishes,  a  fact  that  the  host  made  known  to  one  of 
his  Jewish  friends  with  the  request  that  he  pass  the 
word  along  to  his  co-religionists. 

Dr.  Trumbull  was  surprised  and  gratified  to  see  an 
extended  reference  to  this  in  the  editorial  columns  of 
the  Jewish  Messenger  of  New  York  City.  It  was 
mentioned  as  an  act  of  considerate  courtesy  by  a 
Christian  clergyman. 

Recreation  he  found  in  social  enjoyments  perhaps 
more  than  in  any  other  way.  He  delighted  in  enter- 
taining guests  in  his  home,  where  Mrs.  Trumbull  and 
their  children,  older  or  younger,  joined  in  giving  wel- 
come to  those  who  came  within  that  charmed  and 
charming  circle.  The  house  itself  seemed  to  reach 
out  cordially  even  to  the  casual  passer-by,  for  when 


As  a  Man  Among  Men  469 


the  lights  were  shining  within,  its  shutters  stood  wide 
open,  then  a  novel  sight  in  Philadelphia,  and  one  could 
see  from  the  dark  street  the  pictures,  the  shaded  lamps, 
the  warm-toned  hangings,  the  little  groups  of  young 
or  old  about  the  piano,  or  conversing  with  glad  ani- 
mation in  the  cozy  rooms. 

It  is  among  the  memorable  traditions  of  that 
household  that,  one  evening.  Dr.  Trumbull  gave 
a  reception  to  Mark  Hopkins,  the  venerable  presi- 
dent of  Williams  College,  and  Samuel  L.  Clemens, 
better  known  as  "  Mark  Twain."  There  was  a 
distinguished  assembly  to  greet  the  two  Marks. 
The  next  morning,  as  President  Hopkins  and  ]\Ir. 
Clemens  were  together  at  the  Trumbull  breakfast- 
table,  the  morning  mail  was  brought  in.  Among  the 
letters  was  one  of  regret  from  Bishop  Stevens,  who 
had  been  away  from  home.  He  said  that  he  was 
sorry  not  to  meet  President  Hopkins,  whom  he 
considered  the  foremost  Christian  philosopher  in 
America,  and  that  he  would  have  been  glad  to  meet 
Mr.  Clemens,  whose  witty  and  humorous  writings 
had  enlivened  so  many  hours  for  him. 

As  Dr.  Trumbull  read  the  letter  aloud,  Mr.  Clemens 
turned  to  President  Hopkins  with  a  look  of  surprise, 
saying : 

"  Why,  that's  funny.    He's  got  us  all  mixed  up !  " 

And  no  one  around  the  table  laughed  more  heartily 
than  President  Hopkins. 

Busy  man  that  he  was,  Trumbull  denied  himself  to 
no  one.  And  his  friends  were  legion.  P^rom  a  rail- 
road president  who  was  accustomed  to  consult  with 
him  about  a  Bible  class  led  by  that  president  to  a 


470  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


poor,  half-demented  old  pensioner  whom  he  practi- 
cally supported  for  years  ;  from  the  famous  scholars 
who  would  call  to  discuss  problems  with  him  to  the 
humblest  member  of  his  own  large  Bible  class  ;  from 
the  Jewish  rabbi  who  sought  information  from  him  on 
archeological  themes  to  the  bewildered  teacher  of  a 
little  class  in  a  frontier  Sunday-school, — to  one  and 
all  he  was  an  open  friend  and  helper. 

He  was  full  of  surprises  for  those  who  tried  to 
interest  him  in  matters  outside  his  duty.  One  day  a 
promoter  had  entered  his  editorial  reception-room 
without  announcement  The  well-dressed,  suave  visi- 
tor bowed  politely  as  he  said,  Dr.  Trumbull,  I  be- 
lieve?" The  Doctor  nodded.  Doctor,  I  have 
called  to  see  you  about  investments."  Quick  as  a 
flash  he  responded  :  How  much  have  you  to 
invest?"  This  was  hardly  a  conventional  way  of 
meeting  a  promoter.  At  another  time  a  book  agent 
endeavored  to  sell  him  a  new  set  of  reference  works. 

No,  I  really  haven't  room  for  it,"  said  the  Doctor. 
*'  I  do  not  care  to  buy  it."  But  the  agent  pressed 
him,  and  somewhat  too  far. 

**See  here,"  cried  the  Doctor,  "do  those  books  of 
yours  tell  anything  about  the  future?" 

''The  future?    No,  sir;  I  guess  not." 

'*Well,"  continued  the  Editor,  his  eyes  twinkling 
with  amusement,  "I've  got  all  the  books  I  want 
about  the  past.  Bring  me  a  book  that  tells  some- 
thing about  the  future,  and  I'll  buy  it  !"  And  thus 
he  pleasantly  but  effectively  disposed  of  the  book 
agent. 

Dr.  Trumbull  delighted  in  answering  others  in  un- 


As  a  Alan  Among  Men 


471 


expected  ways.  Sometimes  the  questioner  would  re- 
cover only  slowly.  Persons  in  all  sincerity  would  put 
baffling  questions  to  him — and  sometimes  would  wish 
they  had  not.    Said  one  to  him  : 

*•  David  said  he  had  never  seen  the  righteous 
forsaken,  nor  his  seed  begging  bread.  I  can't 
understand  that.  Why,  I've  seen  plenty  of  such 
people." 

"Oh,  well,"  said  the  doctor,  "you  and  David 
differ.  David  said  he  never  had  seen  anything  of  the 
sort, — no  matter  what  any  of  the  rest  of  us  may  have 
seen." 

A  minister  asked  him  how  he  read  the  Bible  as  to 
the  state  of  children  at  birth.  He  answered  that  he 
thought  the  Bible  taught  that  "  the  race  started  anew 
with  as  much  benefit  from  the  second  Adam,  as  it 
had  of  harm  from  the  first  Adam  ;  but  that  there  was 
one  text  that  troubled  him." 

"What  is  that?"  asked  the  minister. 

"Where  sin  abounded,  grace  doth  not  so  much 
abound." 

"  Why,  there's  no  such  text  in  the  Bible  ! " 
"Isn't    there?"    responded    Trumbull.  "Why, 
people  seem  to  think  there  is.    And  if  there  isn't  such 
a  text,  the  rest  of  the  New  Testament  all  points  one 
way." 

In  his  earlier  travels  he  was  one  evening  in  a  New 
England  home  when  his  host  brought  up  from  the 
cellar  a  pitcher  of  hard  cider.  Trumbull  declined  it 
when  it  was  offered  him,  whereupon  his  host,  with  a 
slight  sneer,  said,  "  Why,  Mr.  Trumbull,  you  don't 
think  cider  drinking  is  wrong,  do  you  ?" 


472  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


Whatever  /  think  about  it,"  flashed  out  the  guest, 
it  is  evident        yoii  think  it  is  wrong !  " 

And  that  proved  to  be  exactly  the  truth. 

Those  who  sought  from  Dr.  Trumbull  specific  an- 
swers to  questions  of  duty  got  clear  statements  of 
principles  by  which  the  questions  must  be  tested  and 
decided.  Those  who  knew  him  best  came  to  expect 
the  unexpected  in  his  answers.  He  was  asked  to  what 
one  thing,  or  to  what  two  or  more  things,  he  attributed 
the  results  of  his  efforts  in  his  varied  life-work. 

**To  recognizing  my  place,"  he  replied,  as  the 
one  that  God  has  called  me  to  be  in  for  the  time  be- 
ing, and  then  striving  to  do  my  dut>^  there,  whether 
fame  or  failure,  riches  or  povert>%  be  the  result.  Since 
my  young  manhood  I  have  never  seen  the  time  when 
I  would  change  the  place  to  which  I  had  been  called 
for  the  time,  even  to  rule  a  nation,  to  secure  ten  mil- 
lion dollars  a  year,  or  to  evangelize  a  hemisphere,  with- 
out a  special  and  unmistakable  new  call  from  God." 

There  were  certain  inquiries  which  he  would  answer 
with  minute  care,  and  very  many  such  letters  he  wrote 
to  troubled  or  puzzled  correspondents  everywhere.  To 
a  New  England  pastor  he  wrote  : 

You  ask  my  personal  opinion  of  the  meaning  and  difference 
of  the  terms  "Revelation  and  Inspiration."  I  am  glad  to  make 
reply,  as  you  request  it  as  a  personal  favor.  I  speak  of  the 
words  themselves,  not  attempting  a  close  theological  definition. 

• '  Revelation ' '  is  the  making  known  what  was  before  un- 
known or  concealed.  A  revelation  may  be  from  man  or  from 
God,  or  from  man  as  from  God.  Revelation  is  of  truth  or 
truths  disclosed  to  the  hearers. 

"Inspiration"  is  the  influencing  or  directing  of  one's  spirit 
and  thought,  so  that  for  the  time  he  is  the  agent  and  mouth- 


As  a  Mail  Among  Me7i 


473 


piece  of  the  inspirer.  One  inspired  of  God  will  speak,  while 
thus  inspired,  as  God  would  have  him  speak,  saying  what  God 
would  have  him  say. 

A  man  of  God  may  have  a  special  message  or  revelation 
from  God,  in  the  line  of  a  warning,  or  an  answered  petition,  or 
a  directed  course  of  wisdom  ;  or  it  may  be  his  mission  to  declare 
or  emphasize  truth  2Xx^2l&)-  revealed  from  God.  Or,  a  man  of 
God  may  be  inspired  in  the  delivery  of  God's  message,  and  by 
the  consciousness  that  he  is  speaking  God's  truth,  or  for  God. 

A  revelatioji  is  of  a  particular  truth  or  message.  Inspiration 
is  of  one' s  spirit,  showing  itself  in  the  nature  of  the  utterance, 
and  in  one's  manner  of  declaration,  written  or  spoken. 

This,  briefly,  is  my  understanding  of  revelation  and 
inspiration. 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Paul  de  Schweinitz,  a  leader  of  leaders 
in  the  Moravian  Church,  wrote  to  Dr.  Trumbull  asking 
his  opinion  in  a  typical  case  of  physical  and  moral 
surgery.  One  of  Dr.  de  Schweinitz's  parishioners  had 
undergone  a  critical  operation.  Four  days  later  her 
five-year-old  boy  died  suddenly  of  membranous  croup. 
Before  the  mother  had  undergone  the  operation  she 
had  been  promised  that  the  little  boy  would  be 
brought  to  see  her  in  a  few  days  ;  but  now  the  sur- 
geon forbade  the  husband  to  tell  her  the  heartbreaking 
news  until  she  had  recovered  more  fully  from  her 
operation.  "I  wrote  to  Dr.  Trumbull,"  says  Dr.  de 
Schweinitz,  asking  his  opinion  whether  in  this  case  a 
lie  were  unavoidable."  This  drew  forth  the  following 
characteristic  reply  : 

My  Dear  Brother  : 

Your  letter  interests  me,  and  I  hasten  to 
reply  as  best  I  can,  although  I  can  only  put  the  truth  as  God 
gives  me  to  see  it,  without  claiming  the  right  to  decide  a  ques- 
tion of  duty  for  another. 


474  He7iry  Clay  Trumbull 


All  the  points  you  state  are  met  in  my  book,  "A  Lie  Never 
Justifiable  ;"  therefore  I  do  not  attempt  to  explain  or  argue 
them  here. 

As  I  see  it,  nothing  can  justify  a  lie.  Even  God  Himself  is 
forbidden  by  His  very  nature  to  lie  or  to  approve  a  lie.  Hence 
the  mere  consequences  of  refusing  to  lie  are  not  to  change  an 
eternal  verity.  Whether  it  cost  one  life  or  ten  thousand  lives 
makes  no  difference. 

A  physician  is  responsible  to  God  for  his  own  action.  A 
husband  may  leave  his  wife's  treatment  in  a  doctor's  hand, 
but  no  doctor  of  medicine,  or  doctor  of  divinity,  or  doctor  of 
devilishness,  can  justify  a  husband  in  telling  a  lie.  The  hus- 
band is  responsible  for  his  own  action  so  far.  This  covers  the 
main  point. 

A  doctor  may  be  mistaken  in  counseling  a  lie  to  be  told  to 
a  sick  wife,  in  the  hope  of  saving  her  life.  I  knew  a  case 
much  like  the  one  you  state,  where  a  clergyman  proposed  to 
tell  a  lie  to  his  sick  wife,  and  the  physician  said,  that  it  would 
be  better  for  the  wife  to  know  the  truth  while  very  sick,  having 
it  tenderly  spoken  to  her,  than  to  learn  it  later  when  recovering, 
and  perhaps  be  set  back  by  it  and  thus  lose  her  life  as  a  con- 
sequence. 

It  seems  to  me  that  any  attempt  to  lie  to  that  sick  woman 
will  be  pretty  surely  a  failure,  and  will  bring  disaster.  One' 
lie  will  necessitate  more.  A  wrong  start  is  not  likely  to  make 
a  good  progress  or  ending. 

Telling  the  exact  truth  as  far  as  anything  is  said,  yet  hold- 
ing back  what  is  not  needed  to  be  known,  is  speaking  in  a 
guarded  way  so  as  to  conceal  what  one  has  a  right  to  conceal. 
It  may  not  be  spoken  with  intent  to  deceive,  even  though  a 
hearer  may  be  self-deceived.  This  difference  is  a  very  real 
one.  I  have  shown  this  in  full  in  my  book.  I  refer  you  to 
that  for  the  argument. 

The  case  you  state  is  a  trying  one,  but  nothing  in  it  is  new. 
It  does  not  change  my  view  of  God  or  His  demands.  May 
He  guide  you  into  all  truth. 

Yours  sincerely, 

H.  Clay  Trumbull. 


As  a  Man  Among  Men  475 


Men  of  widely  different  temperament  were  equally 
drawn  to  Dr.  Trumbull,  whose  joy  was  in  service  to 
any  who  seemed  to  have  any  need  of  him. 

President  Robert  Ellis  Thompson,  preacher,  edu- 
cator, political  economist,  and  for  many  years  closely 
associated  with  him  in  the  editorial  work  of  The 
Sunday  School  Times,  says  of  him  : 

It  has  been  my  privilege  to  have  known  several 
men  to  whom  I  looked  up  as  remarkable  persons,  but 
of  them  all  Dr.  Trumbull  was  the  most  remarkable. 
He  was  a  rare  combination  of  lofty  character,  wide 
interests  in  life,  originality  in  thought,  and  tender 
interest  in  those  whom  Providence  brought  into  his 
life. 

"It  was  perhaps  this  last  trait  of  his  character 
which  was  the  most  impressive.  He  had  an  instinc- 
tive sense  of  personality.  When  he  was  speaking  to 
any  one,  he  seemed  to  realize  what  that  person  was, 
and  his  way  of  looking  at  things.  If  he  spoke  of 
those  who  were  not  present,  a  few  words  showed  that 
he  knew  them  in  a  close  and  appreciative  way,  which 
amounted  to  having  their  spiritual  portraits  before  his 
mind.  And  while  this  kind  of  penetration  is  often 
associated  with  contemptuous  judgments  of  men,  in 
him  it  was  altogether  the  opposite.  He  was  free 
from  what  Lady  Somerset  calls  'the  sin  of  good 
people,'  the  depreciation  of  others.  He  entered  into 
right  and  human  relations  with  those  who  came  near 
him,  and  always  sought  to  be  of  use  to  them. 
*  PVicnd,  come  up  higher,'  might  be  said  to  be  the 
watchword  of  his  life. 

In  coming  into  close  association  with  him  in  the 


476  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


office  of  The  Sunday  School  Times,  I  was  surprised 
to  see  with  what  an  effort  he  did  the  things  he  did  the 
best.  He  wrote  with  labor,  every  sentence  being 
worked  over,  words  rejected  and  other  substituted. 
He  had  none  of  the  facility  which  makes  the  pro- 
verbially *  easy  writing  but  hard  reading.'  He  toiled 
to  do  justice  to  his  thought,  to  give  it  the  best  expres- 
sion he  was  capable  of,  and  that  which  would  make  it 
at  once  intelligible  to  the  wide  and  varied  circle  he  was 
^  seeking  to  reach  and  influence.  No  editorial,  no  book 
of  his  required  to  be  read  three  or  four  times  to  catch 
his  meaning.  He  was  not  a  born  author,  with  the 
ability  to  sit  down  and  scribble  indefinitely.  He  did 
his  work  with  difficulty,  but  he  did  it  well. 

"Of  his  literary  work  I  speak  with  astonishment 
I  did  not  know  much  about  his  books  when  I  came  to 
work  with  him,  but  it  was  my  happy  privilege  to 
follow  him  step  by  step  through  his  labor  on  three 
of  them,  and  to  give  him  some  assistance  in  collect- 
ing facts  and  in  making  translations.  I  count  it  the 
greatest  privilege  of  my  life.  Those  books,  especially 
that  on  Friendship  and  that  on  the  Blood  Covenant, 
have  only  begun  to  exert  the  influence  which  they 
are  to  possess,  on  the  thought  and  the  devotion  of  the 
Church.  They  present  the  Christian  theology  from  a 
new  point  of  view,  from  the  standpoint  of  human 
experience  and  the  spiritual  history  of  mankind. 
Already  I  hear  of  their  currency  in  classes  and  cir- 
cles which  I  should  never  have  expected  them  to 
reach,  and  from  countries  where  you  never  would 
have  expected  them  to  be  known. 

"  And  this  man  of  far-reaching  influence  and  single- 


As  a  Man  Among  Men  477 


hearted  devotion,  was  the  very  embodiment  of  kind- 
ness to  those  who  were  associated  with  him.  When 
any  crisis  or  trouble  fell  upon  any  of  us,  his  was  the 
kindest  heart  and  the  gentlest  touch.  From  any  sor- 
row he  drew  the  lesson  that  it  was  sent  to  make  us 
better  and  purer.  He  was  a  Christlike  influence  with 
those  who  saw  him  every  day,  no  less  than  to  those  he 
met  less  frequently  and  more  formally.  His  Master, 
indeed,  dominated  his  whole  life,  and  filled  the  sky 
from  horizon  to  horizon.  He  lived  to  perpetuate  and 
extend  that  divine  influence." 

First  and  foremost  he  was  every  inch  a  man,"  says 
the  Rev.  Dr.  Stephen  W.  Dana,  for  more,  than  a  quar- 
ter century  his  pastor  in  the  Walnut  Street  Presby- 
terian Church.  ''There  was  nothing  weak  or  effemi- 
nate about  him.  There  was  nothing  sanctimonious 
in  his  manner.  He  was  no  ascetic  or  recluse.  He 
was  intensely  human.  Every  nerve  and  fibre  of  his 
being  throbbed  with  vitality. 

"  One  of  his  prominent  characteristics  as  a  man 
among  men  was  his  power  of  leadership.  Drop  Dr. 
Trumbull  anywhere,  in  the  army,  on  shipboard,  in  a 
church,  in  a  social  circle,  in  a  political  or  religious 
convention,  and  in  a  surprisingly  short  time  he  would 
be  one  of  the  recognized  leaders.  For  twenty-eight 
years  he  was  a  parishioner  of  mine,  and  during  that 
long  period  we  maintained  the  closest  intimacy. 
There  were  at  that  time  an  exceptionally  large  num- 
ber of  able  and  prominent  men  in  the  congregation, 
lawyers,  judges,  physicians,  bankers,  men  of  business, 
teachers,  professors,  and  doctors  of  divinit}^  Yet  it  is 
doubtful  if  there  was  one  among  them  all  who  wielded 


478 


Henry  Clay  Trumbitll 


more  influence  or  had  greater  capacity  for  drawing 
others  around  him  for  good  than  Dr.  Trumbull.  He 
helped  to  give  a  high  character  to  the  church  and 
Sunday-school,  with  which  he  was  so  closely  identified 
and  which  loved  him  so  dearly.  It  was  on  this  ac- 
count that  he  was  held  in  such  high  esteem  and 
affection  by  our  people. 

**  A  second  marked  characteristic  was  his  power  of 
sympathy.  He  could  feel  with  and  for  another  to  an 
exceptional  degree.  He  was  a  'son  of  consolation.' 
He  could  'weep  with  those  who  weep,  and  rejoice 
with  those  v/ho  rejoice.'  It  was  in  the  early  days  of 
our  friendship,  when  a  great  sorrow  came  into  my  life, 
that  I  learned  to  know  the  delicate  and  penetrating 
power  of  his  s\^mpathy.  As  the  years  went  by  I 
opened  my  heart  to  him  as  I  have  never  done  to 
any  other  man.  This,  I  venture  to  say,  is  true  of 
scores  of  others.  He  could  adapt  himself  to  old  and 
young,  to  the  joyous  and  the  sad,  bubbling  over  at  one 
moment  with  wit  and  humor,  and  again  speaking  with 
a  tenderness  and  pathos  which  drew  tears  to  the  eyes. 

I  might  speak  of  the  clear  way  in  which  he 
grasped  the  fundamental  principles  of  a  puzzling 
question,  dispelling  its  mist  and  doubt,  the  positive 
manner  in  which  he  asserted  a  conviction  when  he 
had  reached  what  he  believed  to  be  solid  ground. 
This  with  his  sympathy  was  a  great  aid  in  his  indi- 
vidual work  for  individuals. 

*'  He  exemplified  most  beautifully  in  his  own  life  the 
truths  which  he  taught  in  his  great  book,  "  Friendship 
the  Master- Passion."  His  one  thought  was  not  what 
he  could  get  out  of  a  friend,  but  how  best  he  could 


As  a  Man  Among  Men  479 


serve  the  one  he  loved.  I  recall  most  gratefully  what 
he  was  to  me  and  mine  during  a  long  series  of  years. 
I  do  not  refer  to  presents,  often  rich  and  beautiful, 
but  to  the  countless  ways  in  which  he  helped  me  as 
preacher  and  pastor.  Among  many  friends  and 
parishioners,  staunch  and  true,  never  was  one  more 
loyal  and  loving  than  he.  How  greatly  he  enlarged 
his  influence  through  the  lives  of  his  friends  whom  he 
so  greatly  enriched  !  He  was  not  a  man  with  whom 
one  could  always  agree.  He  would  sometimes  be- 
come greatly  excited  in  debate,  lose  his  temper, 
blurt  out  the  impetuous  word  which  hurt,  but  was 
quick  to  apologize  and  was  readily  forgiven. 

I  have  not  spoken  of  his  magnetism,  his  tact,  his 
common  sense,  his  alert  mind,  his  spirit  of  investiga- 
tion, his  business  ability,  his  gift  of  speech,  his  force 
and  charm  as  a  writer,  but  I  have  singled  out  three 
marked  characteristics  of  his  as  a  devoted  Christian 
man  among  men,  his  power  as  a  leader,  his  excep- 
tionally sympathetic  nature  and  his  rare  unselfishness 
and  loyalty  as  a  friend.  Brilliant  in  mind,  distin- 
guished as  a  scholar  and  writer,  he  was  greater  in 
heart.  It  was  by  the  power  of  love  that  he  swayed 
men  most  deeply.  It  is  this  which  makes  his  memor}^ 
so  fragrant  to  those  who  knew  and  loved  him." 

In  his  relations  with  others,  Dr.  Trumbull  could  not 
lightly  take  on  or  let  go  a  friendship  worthy  of  the 
name.  Any  relationship  that  could  be  so  dealt  with 
was  by  no  means  a  friendship  as  he  conceived  it. 

A  brother  editor  whom  he  rejoiced  to  number 
among  his  friends,  and  to  whom  he  steadfastly  was  a 
friend,   was  concerned  over  what  seemed    for  the 


480  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


moment  like  a  ripple  on  the  even  surface  of  that 
friendship,  and  he  wrote  to  Trumbull  of  his  anxiety. 
Promptly  came  the  answer,  in  which  was  this  revealing 
passage  : 

Your  letter  of  the  loth  instant  reaches  me  this  morning.  I 
hasten  to  reply  to  it,  ahhough  the  special  pressure  on  me  this 
week  cramps  me  for  time  to  say  all  I  would  like  to  say. 

The  truth  is  I  have  never  had  a  thought  of  any  interruption 
of  our  friendship  or  of  our  friendly  relations,  and  for  that  very 
reason  I  have  not  been  careful  to  express  myself  on  the  sub- 
ject. An  assurance  of  friendship  on  my  part  is  a  matter  for  a 
life-time.    I  could  never  reopen  a  decision  of  that  sort. 

Dr.  Trumbull  was  essentially  a  man  of  power," 
writes  Professor  A.  H.  Sayce,  of  Oxford,  both  moral 
and  intellectual,  and  exerted  a  deep  and  abiding  influ- 
ence upon  men  of  very  different  minds  and  points  of 
view.  There  were  three  things  about  him  which 
always  struck  me  more  especially, — his  strong  com- 
mon sense,  his  religious  and  moral  earnestness,  and 
his  capacity  for  continuous  and  conscientious  work. 
His  sanity  of  judgment  made  the  ordinary  man  of  the 
world  respect  his  opinions,  his  intense  but  rational 
faith  impressed  those  who  read  what  he  had  to  say 
about  religion,  and  his  patient  collection  and  lucid 
arrangement  of  facts  will  cause  books  like  'The 
Blood  Covenant'  always  to  remain  standard  authori- 
ties. 

"  I  came  to  know  Dr.  Trumbull  some  thirty  years 
ago  through  Dr.  Hammond  Trumbull,  with  whom  I 
had  been  corresponding  on  the  subject  of  the  North 
American  Indian  languages  ;  but  it  was  not  until  I 
had  read  and  studied  '  Kadesh-barnea '  that  I  realized 


As  a  Ma7i  Among  Men  481 


what  exceptional  gifts  he  possessed.  It  seemed  to 
me  to  mark  an  epoch  in  the  history  of  Old  Testament 
research.  It  was  the  work  of  a  scholar,  but  it  was  also 
the  work  of  a  strong  mind  endowed  with  sound  com- 
mon sense,  which,  after  all,  is  quite  as  important  in 
science  as  in  the  affairs  of  daily  life.  It  was  this  same 
quality  of  common  sense  which  made  Dr.  Trumbull 
such  an  excellent  judge,  not  only  of  men,  but  of  his 
scientific  authorities,  and  so  lends  a  permanent  value 
to  the  collection  of  facts  in  '  The  Blood  Covenant '  or 
*  The  Covenant  of  Salt '  [a  special  study  of  the  use  of 
salt  in  covenanting,  published  in  October,  1899,  a 
companion  volume  to  ''The  Blood  Covenant"  and 
"The  Threshold  Covenant."] 

"  Dr.  Trumbull  once  told  me  that  '  Friendship  the 
Master- Passion '  was  the  work  of  which  he  himself 
thought  most,  and  upon  which  he  had  bestowed  the 
most  thought  and  care.  And  it  is  distinguished  by 
the  same  characteristics  as  those  which  have  lent  direct 
value  to  his  more  purely  archeological  writings." 

"  His  great  strength,"  says  Professor  Herman  V. 
Hilprecht,  "was  his  natural  intuition.  Long  before 
any  one  told  him  anything  about  a  subject  or  a  man, 
when  confronted  with  either,  the  subject  as  a  whole 
and  the  man  as  a  whole,  were  grasped  with  instant 
perception. 

"  His  long  connection  with  eastern  affairs  made  him 
a  necessary  adviser  for  the  authorities  of  the  University 
of  Pennsylvania  in  their  archeological  work.  Many  a 
time  in  the  executive  committee  meetings  of  the 
Babylonian  Exploration  Fund  of  Philadelphia,  when 
various  plans  were  proposed,  and  it  seemed  hard  to 


482  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


get  at  what  was  really  essential,  Dr.  Trumbull  in  his 
keen  way  would  make  a  proposition  that  would 
promptly  be  carried.  His  work  was  eminently  that 
of  a  pioneer,  who  had  great  aims  in  mind." 

Professor  Robert  W.  Rogers,  of  Drew  Theological 
Seminary,  whose  archeological  writings  have  so  greatly 
enlightened  the  public  mind  on  the  great  issues  of 
biblical  research,  says  appreciatively  : 

"  It  was  in  my  wonderfully  happy  boyhood,  when 
I  had  time  and  cheering  opportunity  to  hear  good 
preaching,  that  I  learned  to  steal  away  once  in  a 
while  from  my  own  church  to  hear  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Leonard  Woolsey  Bacon  preach.  The  flavor  of 
those  sermons  is  a  comfort  and  joy  even  yet.  It 
was  that  same  Dr.  Bacon  who  introduced  the  slender, 
pale-faced  boy  to  Dr.  Trumbull.  Then  I  learned  to 
go  to  Dr.  Trumbull's  Bible  class,  when  my  own 
Sunday-school  session  was  held  at  a  different  hour. 
The  freshness,  the  force,  the  sparkle,  the  warmth,  the 
spiritual  insight  of  those  expositions  simply  captivated 
my  eager,  boyish  mind.  I  had  never  heard  anything 
comparable  to  them  before,  and  I  have  never  heard 
their  equal  since.  Dr.  Trumbull  began  to  talk  with 
me  before  and  after  his  class  instruction,  and  then  on 
one  great  red-letter  day  invited  me  to  call  at  his  edi- 
torial rooms  during  the  week.  It  was  so  like  him 
then  to  ask  me  to  come  again,  until  the  visits  were 
frequent ;  very  brief  they  were  if  he  were  closely 
driven  by  work,  sometimes  prolonged  if  good  fortune 
had  brought  me  at  a  favorable  moment.  The  in- 
fluence thus  exerted  lives  potent  to-day.  He  loved 
scholarship  for  its  own  sake,  and  every  aspiration  of 


As  a  Man  Among  Men  483 


mine  toward  it  he  encouraged  and  stimulated.  The 
skill  with  which  he  kept  the  very  highest  ideals  before 
me  week  after  week  is  my  admiration  and  despair  as 
I  now  look  back  upon  those  bright  days. 

How  handsome  he  was  ;  his  patriarchal  beard,  his 
luxuriant  hair,  his  brilliant  and  dancing  eyes,  made  a 
picture  to  charm  and  to  command.  He  was  always 
seated  at  the  desk,  on  which  there  was  often  no  place 
to  write  for  the  rows  of  books  and  pamphlets.  A  pile 
of  long,  narrow  strips  of  paper,  usually  light  green  in 
color,  lay  on  the  desk  slide,  and  a  half  dozen  well- 
sharpened  pencils  were  well  within  reach.  He  was 
usually  writing  rapidly,  but  would  bid  me  be  seated 
while  he  finished  out  that  paragraph,  or  chased  to  its 
logical  conclusion  an  argument  that  dare  not  be  inter- 
rupted in  its  flight.  Directly  that  I  was  seated  the 
whole  environment  seemed  to  disappear  from  the 
range  of  his  consciousness.  His  concentration  was 
complete,  his  absorption  in  that  one  thing  for  that 
one  time  drove  everything  else  from  the  field.  The 
pencil  would  travel  onward,  like  a  live  creature,  for 
several  minutes.  Then  he  would  pause  and  read 
over  to  himself  in  a  low,  crooning  voice  what  had  just 
been  written,  and,  rapidly  erasing  here  or  there  a 
word,  substitute  another.  Sometimes  the  whole  sen- 
tence, nay  the  whole  paragraph,  would  go,  and  a  new 
one  would  take  its  place  with  almost  startHng  rapidit}-. 
Again  he  would  go  over  one  sentence  with  painstak- 
ing iteration,  repeating  it  in  a  low  tone,  and  trying 
word  after  word  till  the  effect  was  produced.  Tlicn 
he  would  suddenly  lay  down  his  pencil,  and  swinging 
round  on  his  chair,  pour  out  such  wondrous  talk  as 


484  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


might  tempt  men  to  cross  seas  to  hear.  Grave  and 
gay,  serious  and  humorous  by  turns,  enriched  by  a 
Hfetime  of  great  experiences,  and  hghted  up  by 
stories  inimitably  told.  It  was  in  such  conversation 
that  he  kept  me  stirred  to  pursue  learning,  to  make 
scholarship  an  end  worthy  of  the  highest  endeavor, 
to  follow  Christ  and  seek  to  know  him.  He  was 
never  too  busy  to  see  me,  never  so  weary  but  he  had 
a  reserve  of  nervous  energy  to  cheer  me  on  to  some 
higher  endeavor.    What  a  precious  memory  !  " 

So  in  yet  another  sphere  of  influence,  wherein  his 
energies  had  their  fullest  scope,  the  sum  of  his  quali- 
ties as  a  man  made  their  impress  upon  co-workers  in 
that  sphere.  I  always  regarded  him,"  says  Bishop 
John  H.  Vincent,  "  as  a  man  of  great  personal  weight, 
staunch,  frank,  intense,  wise.  He  gave  dignity  to 
Sunday-school  work  from  the  simple  fact  that  he  was 
identified  with  it.  As  a  man  of  force,  a  cultivated 
man,  an  old  soldier,  a  man  of  scholarship,  he  im- 
parted a  certain  dignity  to  the  Sunday-school  business 
that  it  had  never  had  before.  I  have  always  measured 
his  value  by  the  manhood,  scholarship,  and  power  of 
personality  which  he  imparted  to  what  were  to  me  com- 
paratively new  methods  in  the  Sunday-school  field." 

Among  the  old  soldiers  there  was  everywhere  an 
open-hearted  affection  for  the  chaplain  of  the  fight- 
ing Tenth  Connecticut.  It  always  seemed  to  me," 
says  General  O.  O.  Howard,  that  Chaplain  Trumbull 
never  failed  at  all,  and  lived  up  to  the  very  highest 
standard.  The  fact  that  he  loved  his  first  designation 
of  *  Chaplain,*  and  considered  that  the  highest,  indi- 
cated the  humility  of  the  man." 


As  a  Man  Among  Men  485 


From  October  20,  1886,  to  October  20,  1897, 
Trumbull  was  Chaplain-in-Chief  of  the  Commandery- 
in-Chief  of  the  Loyal  Legion.  He  was  called  upon 
for  service  upon  public  occasions  again  and  again. 
He  had  been  one  of  the  chaplains  at  General  Grant's 
funeral  in  1885  (see  Appendix) ;  and  when,  on  April 
27,  1897,  the  seventy-fifth  anniversary  of  Grant's 
birth,  the  body  of  the  great  commander  was  removed 
from  its  temporary  resting-place  to  the  mausoleum 
erected  by  a  nation's  gifts,  Chaplain  Trumbull  was 
again  a  sharer  in  the  solemn  rites. 

"The  President  of  the  United  States  was  there," 
he  wrote,  to  make  by  his  presence  and  words  the 
occasion  one  of  national  import ;  governors  of  states 
north  and  south,  east  and  west ;  officials  and  dignita- 
ries, with  representatives  of  foreign  governments  ; 
more  than  fifty  thousand  soldiers,  including  regular 
troops  and  citizen  soldiery ;  veterans  of  the  Civil  War 
from  both  the  Union  and  Confederate  armies  ;  while 
on  the  Hudson  River,  in  sight  from  the  tomb,  were 
war  vessels  of  our  American  nav>^  and  others  of  Eng- 
land, France,  Spain,  and  Italy. 

It  was  like  the  funeral  ceremony  repeated,  with 
the  added  impressiveness  of  the  universal  conviction 
that  the  passage  of  years  only  brought  out  more  and 
more  distinctly  the  greatness  of  General  Grant  as  a 
soldier  and  a  man,  and  the  depth  and  permanency  of 
the  Nation's  gratitude  to  him.  Again  it  was  my 
privilege  to  bear  a  part  in  the  closing  tribute  of  the 
day's  ceremonies,  by  being  one  of  a  detail  of  the 
Grand  Army  Post  of  which  General  Grant  was  a 
member,  to  lay  a  wreath  with  these  loving  words  at 


486  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


the  door  of  his  tomb,  and  to  utter  words  of  prayer 
for  God's  blessing  on  the  lessons  of  his  life  to  those 
who  had  survived  him. 

*  With  the  placing  of  this  memorial  tribute,  com- 
rades, our  service  for  General  Grant  is  at  an  end  ;  but 
his  service  for  us  and  for  our  country  still  goes  on. 
While  this  granite  structure  stands,  and  so  long  as 
our  country  endures,  his  life  story  will  be  a  lesson 
and  an  inspiration  to  the  citizens  of  the  great  re- 
public which  he  saved  and  served.  It  is  enough  for 
us  that  we  were  of  the  mighty  host  by  which  he  was 
enabled  to  do  his  work,  and  that  we  may  strive  and 
hope  to  be  of  that  multitude  which  no  man  can  num- 
ber, who  shall  gather  finally  in  the  presence  of  the 
Captain  of  his  Salvation,  whom  he  served  and  trusted, 
and  whom  we  may  trust  and  serve  forevermore.'  " 

In  1 899  it  began  to  dawn  upon  Dr.  Trumbull  that 
he  could  not  do  as  much,  physically,  as  he  had  been 
accustomed  to  do.  His  powers  of  locomotion  were 
failing.  He  could  not  move  about  on  his  errands  of 
mercy  and  blessing  as  readily  as  he  was  wont  to  do. 
He  had  said  to  a  friend,  years  earlier,  that  the  one 
condition  he  did  not  believe  he  would  ever  be  called 
upon  to  bear  was  the  life  of  a  shut-in.  Nothing  in 
his  army  life  was  so  wearing  upon  him  as  his  prison 
experiences,  and  now  he  did  not  see  how  he  could 
live  if  he  could  not  get  about. 

But  that  was  just  the  trial  he  was  called  upon  to 
undergo,  and  he  met  it  in  the  same  spirit  in  which  he 
met  other  sendings  that  he  would  not  have  chosen. 
No  one  would  have  suspected  from  his  manner  or 
words  that  his  'growing  weakness  was  irksome  to  him. 


As  a  Man  Arnong  Men  487 


He  wondered  a  little  about  it,  hoped  it  might  pass, 
and  adjusted  his  life  to  the  new  conditions  as  if  he 
had  never  known  any  other. 

His  physician  would  not  allow  him  to  do  any  work 
that  was  urgent,  so  Dr.  Trumbull  busied  himself  with 
the  writing  of  reminiscent  articles  and  editorial  con- 
tributions to  his  paper,  without  attempting  to  do  much 
that  needed  to  be  done  on  time.  He  completed 
in  June,  1900,  his  book,  "Illustrative  Answers  to 
Prayer,"  in  which  he  recorded  some  of  his  own  and 
others'  personal  experiences  as  illustrative  of  such 
prayer  as  God  welcomes  and  honors."  He  went  to 
his  office  with  a  measure  of  regularity,  but  did  more 
and  more  of  his  work  at  home,  trusting  freely  to  his 
son  and  others  whom  he  had  trained  to  carry  on  the 
paper.  He  was  soon  obliged  to  give  up  his  Bible 
class  and  teachers' -meeting,  and  as  the  new  century 
dawned  he  began  to  speak  most  cheerfully  of  his  re- 
tirement from  the  more  active  service  with  which  his 
days  had  been  so  full.  Yet  even  now  he  was  to  do  a 
work  which  some  have  believed  has  done  more  last- 
ing good,  and  will  continue  longer,  than  any  other 
of  his  contributions  to  the  uplifting  of  his  fellow- 
men. 

Friends  who  called  to  see  him  found  him  busy, 
contented,  full  of  the  old  fire  in  look  and  voice  and 
spirit.  And  when  any  one  would  attempt  to  condole 
with  him  over  his  plight,  as  he  sat  in  his  chair  at 
home  or  walked  about  the  streets  of  West  Philadelphia 
leaning  on  the  arm  of  a  helper,  he  would  laugh  over 
the  humor  of  the  situation,  and  say,  as  he  did  more 
than  once  : 


488  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


Well,  I'm  glad  I  am  not  entirely  laid  aside.  I'd 
rather  lose  thre  legs  any  time  than  one  head  !" 

To  a  friend  of  his  early  Sunday-school  days,  Mr. 
L.  W.  Hawley  of  Vermont,  formerly  the  state  Sunday- 
school  secretary,  he  wrote  in  1 901  a  letter  which 
mirrors  his  state  of  mind  with  characteristic  humor 
and  kindliness  : 

Dear  Brother  Hawley  : 

It  revives  former  days  very  pleasantly  to  hear  from 
you  ;  and  I  thank  you  for  your  kind  words.  I  am  not  able  to 
move  about  without  assistance,  as  my  lower  limbs  do  not  move 
freely  ;  but  this  does  not  affect  my  head  or  my  heart,  and  for 
this  I  am  grateful. 

My  son,  and  one  of  my  sons-in-law,  manage  the  paper, 
while  I  help  them  some  in  my  writing.  I  am  glad  you  like 
the  improved  paper. 

In  "The  Child's  Own  Book,"  a  book  of  games  that  I  had 
when  a  boy,  there  was,  on  the  first  page,  a  picture  of  an  old 
man  and  a  boy  playing  checkers.  Under  this  picture  were 
these  words  : 

"To  teach  his  grandson  draughts 

His  time  he  did  employ, 
Until  at  last  the  old  man 

Was  beaten  by  the  boy." 

Now  I  know  what  that  picture  means. 

Your  old  friend, 

H.  Clay  Trumbull. 


THE  UPPER  ROOM 


Looking  back  may  show  us  where  we  have 
failed  to  do  as  well  as  we  could,  or  it  may  remind 
us  that  we  have  done  better  than  we  are  now 
doing.  Looking  forward  may  suggest  to  us  that 
we  can  do  better  than  we  have  done  in  the  past, 
or  it  may  encourage  us  to  see  possibilities  of  our 
doing  in  the  future  beyond  anything  we  have 
thought  of  until  now.  Looking  up  may  indicate 
what  God  would  have  us  do,  and  that  may  be 
better  for  us  than  either  regret  for  shortcomings 
or  encouragement  to  better  doing.  Our  duty  as 
God  shows  it  to  us,  that  should  be  our  aim, 
rather  than  an  improvement  on  our  past,  or  our 
highest  conceivable  attainment  in  time  to  come. 
Better  than  our  best,  as  shown  up  to  this  time, 
or  as  hoped  for  in  time  to  come,  is  well  in  its 
way  ;  but  there  can  be  nothing  better  for  us  than 
God's  purpose  in  our  behalf  as  he  holds  up  the 
standard  and  the  ideal.  —  "Better  Than  ouf 
Best,''  an  editorial  paragraph. 


CHAPTER  XXX 


THE  UPPER  ROOM 

Dr.  Trumbull's  windows  opened  to  the  east,  the 
south,  and  the  west.  The  morning  light,  as  it  shone 
through  the  mists  of  the  city  in  the  early  hours,  would 
find  him  astir  and  eager  for  the  day.  Men  on  their 
way  to  business,  children  schoolward  bound,  could 
see  him  bending  over  his  writing-tablet  as  he  sat  in 
the  deep  bay  window  of  his  room,  where  he  sought 
to  be  as  fully  as  he  might  in  the  play  of  the  light 
and  the  life  that  he  loved.  A  wave  of  the  hand 
from  that  window,  a  sympathetic  nod,  sent  many  a 
man  on  his  way  to  work  with  a  braver  heart  and  a 
higher  hope. 

An  old  organ-grinder  who  for  years  had  frequented 
the  streets  of  West  Philadelphia  came  regularly  each 
week  to  play  beneath  that  hospitable  window,  and 
never  was  its  occupant  too  busy,  too  absorbed  in  any 
theme,  to  cease  work  entirely  until  he  was  satisfied 
that  some  one  in  the  household  had  met,  in  his  name, 
the  expectations  of  the  pleasant-faced,  crippled  ItaHan. 

All  day  long  Dr.  Trumbull  sat  near  the  great  win- 
dows, with  his  books  and  papers  in  orderly  array  about 
him  on  floor  and  chairs  and  window-seats  and  table. 
His  mind  was  on  the  past  as  a  source  of  material 
which  he  must  work  out  in  what  he  freely  recognized 

491 


492  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


was  likely  to  be  a  brief  and  most  uncertain  present.  It 
was  difficult  now  to  persuade  him  to  leave  his  room 
even  for  needed  exercise.  He  would  do  so  because 
his  physician  ordered  it,  though  he  could  hardly  walk, 
and  the  effort  cost  him  a  struggle  not  unlike  the 
arousing  of  his  courage  for  the  emergencies  of  the  old 
army  days.  The  desire  for  bodily  activity  seemed  to 
have  gone  with  the  capacity  for  it,  while  the  brain 
eagerly,  joyously  toiled  on. 

Day  by  day  the  past  gained  in  vividness.  For  a 
time  Dr.  Trumbull's  mind  ranged  in  reminiscence 
along  the  whole  course  of  his  life.  Then  he  perceived 
unities  in  his  groups  of  experiences.  In  the  spring 
of  1 90 1,  he  saw  that  now  was  his  opportunity,  long 
deferred,  to  tell  of  the  dominating  purpose  and  experi- 
ences of  his  Christian  service, — the  leading  of  individ- 
uals to  Christ.  When  the  little  book  appeared  in  the 
summer  of  that  year.  Dr.  Trumbull  had  put  into  it  the 
gist  of  fifty  years'  experience  in  "  God's  chosen  way 
of  evangelizing,  or  of  doing  missionary  work,  from  the 
beginning  of  the  Christian  ages  even  to  the  present 
day."  Before  long  more  than  thirty  thousand  copies 
of  ''Individual  Work  for  Individuals"  had  made  their 
way  into  the  hands  of  persons  who  were  to  be  thus 
influenced  by  the  story  of  a  work  that  Dr.  Trumbull 
always  counted  by  far  his  most  profitable  endeavor 
for  Christ. 

''Looking  back  upon  my  work,  in  all  these  years," 
he  wrote,  "  I  can  see  more  direct  results  of  good 
through  my  individual  efforts  with  individuals,  than  I 
can  know  of  through  all  my  spoken  words  to 
thousands  upon   thousands  of  persons  in  religious 


The  Upper  Room  493 


assemblies,  or  all  my  written  words  on  the  pages  of 
periodicals  or  of  books.  And  in  this  I  do  not  think 
my  experience  has  been  wholly  unlike  that  of  many 
others  who  have  had  large  experience  in  both  spheres 
of  influence.  Reaching  one  person  at  a  time  is  the 
best  way  of  reaching  all  the  world  in  time." 

Scenes  of  the  early  days  were  now  crowding  in 
upon  him  with  wonderful  profusion  and  vividness. 
Memory  awoke  the  echoes  of  his  teeming  youth,  sing- 
ing to  him  down  the  years  the  names  of  heroes  into 
whose  faces  he  had  looked,  whose  words  and  deeds 
had  fired  his  imagination  and  had  aroused  his  aspira- 
tions. Memory  drew  aside  the  veil  of  a  half-century's 
weaving,  and  disclosed  to  him  the  very  forms  and 
utterances  of  a  majestic  company  of  those  heroes  of 
the  faith — missionaries  to  foreign  lands— who  were  in 
the  field  fifty  years  ago.  Adoniram  Judson  was  there  ; 
Miron  Winslow,  Hiram  Bingham,  Robert  Moffat,  S. 
Wells  Williams,  Cyrus  Hamlin,  Albert  Bushnell,  John 
W.  Dulles, — all  these  and  many  others  were  in  that 
company  of  whom  he  wrote  in  his  book,  Old  Time 
Student  Volunteers,"  appearing  in  the  autumn  of 
1902.  These  were  men  whom  he  had  known,  and 
in  whose  lives  he  had  seen  the  evidences  of  God's 
guiding  hand.  He  had  no  narrow  view  of  the  place 
such  men  had  filled.  They  were  the  world  pioneers, 
the  forerunners  of  civilization,  the  torch-bearers  of 
world-encircling  fires  of  truth  ;  no  men  of  small  meas- 
ure, unequal  to  the  doing  of  a  man's  whole  work. 
They,  the  lonely,  misunderstood,  yet  untiring  mis- 
sionaries of  the  cross,  were  the  honored  devotees  of  a 
faith  that  is  better  than  sight,  and  they  were  to  be 


494  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


counted  as  pre-eminent  not  only  in  this,  but  in  the 
lesser  qualities  of  intellect  and  sheer  brain  power, 
worthy  to  be  remembered  as  the  peers  of  any  in  the 
elements  that  lift  the  few  head  and  shoulders  above 
the  crowd. 

Of  our  debt  to  foreign  missionaries  and  missions  he 
wrote  : 

Exploration  and  commerce  owe  more  to  missions 
and  missionaries  than  missions  and  missionaries  owe 
to  exploration  and  commerce.  First  that  which  gives 
life  and  inspires  it  ;  then  that  which  is  a  result  and 
gain  of  new  and  inspired  life.  .  .  . 

**The  real  hope  of  the  world  is  rather  Christian 
missions  than  commerce  and  civilization  and  godless 
education.  .  .  .  We  should  be  poor  indeed  were  we  to 
be  now  deprived  of  what  we  have  already  thus  gained. 

*'So  it  is  a  simple  question  of  paying  our  honest 
debts  that  we  have  to  consider  to  start  with.  After 
that  it  will  be  time  for  us  to  consider  the  question  of 
gratuitous  giving  to  a  good  cause.  Yet  there  might 
be  a  question  whether  the  existing  agencies  for  the 
employment  of  foreign  missionaries  could  use  or  would 
need  just  now,  any  more  money  than  would  be  at 
their  disposal,  if  the  honest  debts  to  them  by  money- 
making  stay-at-homes  were  paid  in,  and  put  at  their 
disposal.  That  is  a  matter  worth  thinking  about.  It 
has  been  occupying  my  mind  of  late,  and  I  find  it  a 
profitable  theme  of  thought." 

No  man  may  altogether  know  what  visions  Dr. 
Trumbull  saw  as  he  sat  in  the  sun-flooded  window  of 
that  upper  room.  Whenever  a  visitor  appeared,  as 
many  did,  he  was  all  animation.    He  plunged  into 


The  Upper  Room  495 


conversation,  told  anecdotes,  discussed  questions  of 
the  day,  or  great  principles  good  for  all  time,  with 
vivacity  and  clearness. 

When  his  little  grandchildren  romped  into  the 
house  and  shouted  their  greetings  from  the  lower  hall, 
his  voice  rang  out  to  them  as  a  boy's  voice.  When 
they  burst  into  his  presence  they  found  liim  laughing 
with  them  in  anticipation  of  a  good  time  together, 
while  he  was  already  reaching  out  to  a  mysteriously 
enticing  package  on  his  table.  Then  work  was  laid 
aside,  and  the  bright-eyed  man  and  the  bright-eyed 
boys  and  their  small  sister  were  children  together  in 
the  sunny  window. 

But  sometimes  toward  evening  one  entering  that 
room  would  come  upon  a  prophet  of  old  with  his  eyes 
on  the  sunset.  The  level  rays  of  the  afternoon  light 
fell  upon  a  figure  erect,  but  not  tensely  so  at  the 
moment.  The  strong,  nervous  hands  rested  firmly  on 
the  arms  of  the  study  chair  ;  pencil  and  paper  were 
laid  aside.  Deep  furrows  were  on  the  brow,  and  in 
the  eyes  there  was  the  light  of  another  world.  Dr. 
Trumbull  had  these  moments  of  intense  quietness  as 
his  days  drew  to  their  close.  They  were  not  sad 
moments  ;  they  were  simply  pauses  in  the  rhythm. 
In  the  early  summer  of  1903,  when  I  was  sitting  one 
day  with  him  in  his  room,  he  laid  aside  his  manu- 
script, turned  to  me,  and  said  quietly  : 

"I'm  glad  to  have  this  opportunity  to  say  a  word 
to  you,  and  I  want  to  speak  with  the  others  from  time 
to  time  in  the  same  way.  I  shall  probably  go  before 
long,  and  when  I  do,  it  isn't  likely  that  I'll  be  able  to 
say  good-by  to  any  one,     I  just  want  you  to  know 


496  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


that  I  wish  I  had  done  far  better  with  the  opportuni- 
ties God  has  given  me." 

As  the  months  passed,  Dr.  Trumbull  again  and 
again  seemed  about  to  loose  his  hold  on  life.  Yet 
none  of  us  believed  that  he  would  go  until  he  could 
no  longer  work  with  a  clear  head.  When  that  time 
should  come,  then  he  himself  would  be  ready  to  lay- 
down  his  work,  in  answer  to  a  call  to  other  service 
wherein  he  might 

"Work for  an  age  at  a  sitting  and  never  be  tired  at  alL" 

In  June  he  completed  the  manuscript  of  My  Four 
Religious  Teachers,"  biographical  studies  of  Charles 
G.  Finney,  David  Hawley,  Elias  R.  Beadle,  and  Hor- 
ace Bushnell,  men  who  had,  in  their  several  ways, 
given  to  his  life  the  guidance  of  principle  and  pur- 
pose in  thinking  and  doing.  For  these  teachers  his 
gratitude  grew  with  the  years. 

"How  was  it,"  he  wrote,  ''that  I  had  just  these 
four  religious  teachers  at  the  time  when  I  most 
needed  their  teaching,  and  when  they  alone  could 
give  what  would  most  help  me  for  my  life-work  in 
God's  service  ?  I  had  no  part  in  the  selection  of  any 
one  of  them  ;  yet  no  one  of  them  could  have  been 
spared  as  a  teacher  coworking  with  the  others,  and  as 
essential  to  the  development  of  the  young  pupil. 
Did  it  just  happen  so  ?  Was  there  no  purpose  back 
of  it,  to  be  recognized  and  to  be  grateful  for? 

"  I  have  always  felt,  and  I  still  feel,  that  this  record 
is  an  illustration  of  the  precious  truth  brought  out  by 
Dr.  Bushnell  in  his  great  sermon,  '  Every  Man's  Life 
a  Plan  of  God.*    God,  in  his  infinite  goodness,  chose 


The  Upper  Room 


497 


those  four  teachers  for  me,  each  one  in  his  own  place, 
and  doing  his  own  work  as  no  other  could  have  done 
it,  and  all  four  working  together.  WJiy  this  was,  I 
do  not  understand  and  can  not  explain  ;  but  that  it 
was,  I  do  not  doubt  any  more  than  that  God  has 
given  me  life,  and  ministers  to  me  in  life. 

Of  the  goodness  of  God  in  putting  me  under  those 
teachers,  and  granting  me  the  guidance  and  inspiration 
of  their  spirit  and  words  and  work,  I  have  no  doubt  or 
question.  Of  my  duty  to  improve  and  to  be  grateful 
for  these  incentives  to  and  help  in  God's  service,  in 
behalf  of  those  whom  God  loves,  I  have  no  more 
doubt  or  question.  For  all  this  good  made  possible 
let  God's  name  be  praised  !  " 

The  preface  of  his  book,  **How  to  Deal  with 
Doubts  and  Doubters,"  bears  the  date  of  September  1 1. 
The  volume  is  really  supplementary  to  "Individual 
Work  for  Individuals,"  and  it  gathers  up  the  golden 
threads  of  many  an  experience  in  meeting  the  sincere 
and  the  insincere  doubts  of  varied  types  of  mind  on 
religious  questions.  His  mind  dwelt  urgently  on  the 
winning  of  individuals  to  Christ,  and  he  took  every 
opportunity  now,  with  even  more  than  his  usual  eager- 
ness, to  speak  with  others  on  this  theme.  That  should 
be  the  burden  of  his  purpose  and  words  in  his  days 
of  the  upper  room,  as  in  the  days  of  his  highway  and 
byway  conversation  with  his  fellow-men.  Those  who 
were  endeavoring  to  win  others  to  Christ  brought 
their  problems  to  Dr.  Trumbull,  and  patiently,  at  any 
cost  of  time  and  strength,  he  would  do  what  he  could 
to  enlighten  and  encourage  any  who  thus  came. 

Toward  the  end  of  October  he  brought  out  a  vol- 


498  He7iry  Clay  Trumbull 


ume  of  sermons,  his  army  addresses  and  a  few  others, 
calling  the  collection  Shoes  and  Rations  for  a  Long 
March."  This  was  Henr>'  Clay  Trumbull's  last  book. 
Not  that  he  had  any  thought  that  this  would  be  so. 
When  the  pages  were  between  covers,  it  was  an  old 
book  to  him,  for  his  mind  ranged  forward  to  others 
yet  unwritten. 

December  set  in,  with  its  brilliant,  windy  skies  and 
its  glory  of  sunlight  and  snow.  On  the  first  Sunday 
in  that  month  of  the  Christmas-tide  Dr.  Trumbull  wel- 
comed the  little  grandchildren  to  the  upper  room, 
and  they  had  a  delightful  time  together.  On  Mon- 
day morning,  the  seventh  of  the  month,  he  was  still 
under  the  spell  of  their  odd  sayings,  recounting  with 
hearty  laughter  the  incidents  of  their  visit. 

The  noontide  light  was  flooding  through  his  win- 
dows, when  he  laid  aside  his  pencil  and  manuscript, 
and  crossed  over  to  his  bed  to  rest  a  while.  He 
seemed  somewhat  concerned  over  his  excessive  weari- 
ness, but  not  more  so  than  at  other  times.  Within  an 
hour  unconsciousness  had  come,  and  before  the  noon 
of  another  day  he  had  passed  from  that  upper  room 
into  the  new  life.  With  the  prattle  of  the  children 
sounding  in  his  ears,  he  had  worked  to  the  last 
moment  as  a  champion  of  the  childlike  Christ,  and 
like  a  little  child  he  fell  asleep. 

It  was  not  unfitting  then,  on  the  morning  of  the 
day  of  his  funeral,  before  his  great  and  good  friends 
should  assemble  for  the  last  rites,  that  two  of  his  little 
grandchildren,  their  mother  and  father,  just  by  them- 
selves in  his  own  room,  should  kneel  by  his  silent 
form  and  repeat  together  the  prayer  which  he  always 


The  Upper  Room 


499 


prayed  as  long  as  he  lived,  when  he  went  to  his 
night's  rest : 

"  Now  I  lay  me  down  to  sleep, 
I  pray  the  Lord  my  soul  to  keep. 
If  I  should  die  before  I  wake, 
I  pray  the  Lord  my  soul  to  take." 

Then  as  they  stood  silently  looking  into  his  dear 
face,  his  three-year-old  namesake  slipped  his  small 
hand  into  his  father's  and  asked  in  solemn,  wide-eyed 
wonder,    Father,  is  this  heaven  ?  " 

When  his  friends  gathered  in  the  Walnut  Street 
Church  to  bear  testimony  to  their  love  for  him,  their 
eyes  beheld  a  simple  ceremonial,  even  as  he  would 
have  wished.  Close  by  him  as  he  lay  asleep  were 
the  chaplain's  broad-brimmed  hat  and  the  army  cloak. 
The  hymns  of  that  hour  were  full  of  dignity  and  ten- 
derness and  triumph.  "The  Christian's  'Good 
Night'"  sounded  softly  through  the  silence,  over  the 
great  company,  wherein  were  Jew  and  Gentile,  mas- 
ters in  the  world's  work,  princes  of  the  faith,  men  and 
women  and  children  knowing  or  not  knowing  their 
friend's  greatness,  but  knowing  that  he  was  -indeed 
their  friend.  They  sang,  too,  that  triumph  song  of 
the  end  of  earthly  days  : 

For  all  the  saints  who  from  their  labors  rest, 
Who  thee  by  faith  before  the  world  confessed, 
Thy  name,  O  Jesus,  be  for  ever  blest, 
Alleluia! 

"Thou  wast  their  Rock,  their  Fortress,  and  their  Might; 
Thou,  Lord,  their  Captain  in  the  well-fought  fight  ; 
Thou,  in  the  darkness  drear,  their  one  true  Light. 
Alleluia  ! 


500  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 


' '  And  when  the  strife  is  fierce,  the  warfare  long, 
Steals  on  the  ear  the  distant  triumph-song, 
And  hearts  are  brave  again,  and  arms  are  strong. 
Alleluia  ! 

From  the  pulpit  his  pastor,  Dr.  Stephen  W.  Dana, 
and  his  friend,  Robert  E.  Speer,  spoke  out  of  full 
hearts,  the  pastor  recalling  the  outlines  of  the  long 
life-course  that  was  now  beginning  anew,  and  the 
other  disclosing  in  burning  words  the  deep  meaning 
of  that  life. 

He  taught  us  three  great  lessons,"  said  Mr. 
Speer, — **the  greatest  lessons  that  man  can  teach  to 
men.  He  showed  us  the  supremacy  of  truth.  Where 
everything  he  wrote  and  said  was  so  evidently  only 
the"  unveiling  of  himself,  a  sort  of  fragrant  moral  ex- 
halation, it  would  not  be  true  to  single  out  any  one 
of  his  books  and  say,  '  This  was  the  distinctive  expres- 
sion of  his  teaching  and  of  himself,'  yet  I  think  that 
one  of  the  three  or  four  of  which  this  might  most 
truthfully  be  said  is  his  little  book  in  defense  of  the 
absolute  inviolability  of  truth. 

*'Itwas  he  who  taught  us  what  friendship  is, — a 
love  that  asks  for  nothing  again,  that  many  waters 
cannot  quench, — serene,  eternal.  No  teacher  of  our 
generation  saw  as  he  saw  the  nature  of  that  love 
which  St.  John  tells  us  is  God.  Beside  his  conception 
all  other  ideals  and  all  books  on  friendship  seem  taw- 
diy  and  of  a  lower  world.  We  who  were  in  his  school 
know  how  to  love.  He  taught  us,  and  we  see  now 
that  next  to  truth  the  most  wondrous  thing  in  life  is 
love,  unselfish,  unchangeable. 

He  taught  us  what  life  is.    This  was  what  he  was 


The  Upper  Room 


501 


dealing  with  in  his  covenant  books,  on  the  covenants 
of  blood,  of  the  threshold,  and  of  salt  Institutions, 
he  held,  were  the  symbols  of  life.  The  covenant  of 
blood,  the  atonement,  was  an  atonement  of  life.  He 
taught  the  reality  of  such  a  mingling.  The  mysticism 
of  the  gospel  lay  like  the  veil  and  the  unveiling  of 
immortality-  across  our  mortal  life.  He  made  real 
and  clear  to  us,  he  set  forth  in  the  language  of  our 
own  day,  the  living  truth  of  the  Saviour's  words,  *  Ex- 
cept ye  eat  the  flesh  of  the  Son  of  man  and  drink  his 
blood,  he  have  not  life  in  yourselves.  He  that  eateth 
my  flesh  and  drinketh  my  blood  hath  eternal  life.' 
He  held  to  the  truth  of  a  divine  intercourse.  This 
was  what  life  was  to  be,  a  fellowship  with  the  divine 
life,  a  union  of  our  souls  with  the  great  life  of  our 
Father,  who  is  God. 

"He  was  all  ahve  in  his  body.  And  the  mind  was 
even  more  quick  and  vital.  It  shrank  from  anything 
commonplace  and  mediocre.  It  leaped  at  the  Hving 
aspects  of  truth.  It  sprang  past  the  inadequacy  of 
systems  to  the  infinite  life  that  cannot  be  codified. 
And  the  spirit  that  was  back  of  all,  that  came  from 
God  and  has  now  returned  whence  it  came  !  Oh, 
friends,  shall  we  feel  upon  our  lives  another  spirit  like 
it  on  the  earth  again  ?  The  life  of  God  was  in  it  It 
lived  in  God.  This  we  shall  see  often.  This  we  may 
experience  ourselves.  But  the  buoyancy,  the  inten- 
sity, the  unassailable  certainty  of  that  life  equally  hid 
and  exposed  with  Christ  in  God,  the  naturalness  in 
the  supcrnaturalness,  the  assurance,  the  humility,  the 
living,  eager  joy  of  it  all — what  irrefutable,  what  posi- 
tively convincing,  what  tenderly  persuasive  evidence 


502  Henry  Clay  Tru7nbull 


this  bore  to  the  reaHty  of  his  doctrine, — that  it  was 
all  so  incarnate  in  his  own  dear  life. 

"How  boundlessly  appreciative  and  generous  he 
was, — seeing  good  where  there  was  no  good  except 
in  his  seeing.  He  loved  his  own  ideals  which  he 
dreamed  he  saw  in  others,  and  then  by  his  sheer  love 
he  began  to  create  them  in  others.  He  had  the 
divine  blindness  of  love  which  saw  past  the  evil  that 
can  be  expelled  from  life.  He  had  the  divine  vision 
of  love  which  beheld  the  invisible  capacities  for  good 
and  beauty.  It  was  but  our  humiliation  and  our  glory 
that  he  was  ever  finding  in  us  nobleness  which  we  did 
not  know  was  possible  for  us,  until  he  loved  it  into 
being  in  us." 

^  4*  jj^ 

In  Henry  Clay  Trumbull's  last  book  there  is  a  ser- 
mon to  which  he  gave  the  title  "  Victorious  in  Death 
and  in  Life."  With  the  great  apostle  he  was  per- 
suaded that  "  neither  death,  nor  life,  nor  angels,  nor 
principalities,  nor  things  present,  nor  things  to  come, 
nor  powers,  nor  height,  nor  depth,  nor  any  other 
creature,  shall  be  able  to  separate  us  from  the  love  of 
God."  And  this  was  the  story  he  told  of  an  experi- 
ence in  the  land  of  preparation  through  which  he 
passed  and  out  of  which  he  came  in  God's  good  time. 

"  While  climbing  the  upper  summits  of  the  moun- 
tains of  Sinai,  I  was  led  by  an  Arab  guide  who  was 
familiar  with  every  step  of  the  perilous  way.  Finally 
we  came  to  the  edge  of  a  threatening  precipice  of 
granite,  which  sloped  away  from  our  very  feet  far 
down  to  a  yawning  ravine  of  jagged  rocks  below. 
Closer  and  closer  to  that  dizzy  edge  lay  our  narrow 


The  Upper  Roofn 


503 


path,  until  the  path  actually  lost  itself,  at  a  point 
where  a  jutting  crag  before  us  seemed  to  forbid  all 
passage,  unless  directly  over  the  mad  precipice  itself 
And  there  my  guide  disappeared,  for  the  moment. 
He  had  swung  himself  around  that  crag,  over  that 
bewildering  cliff,  and  was  now  at  the  base  of  a  moun- 
tain dome,  above  and  beyond  the  path  he  had  left 

As  I  stood  for  a  moment,  with  whirling  brain,  at 
that  appalling  brink  of  death,  I  saw,  just  above  and 
before  me,  the  wiiy  feet  of  my  trusty  guide  beyond 
that  jutting  crag  ;  and  I  heard  his  voice  calling  out 
cheerily  :  'Cling  to  my  feet,  and  swing  yourself  over 
the  pass  !    I  can  hold  you  !    Have  no  fear  ! ' 

"  It  was  not  a  tempting  thing  to  do.  But  it  was 
that  or  nothing.  I  caught  at  those  sturdy  ankles  with 
a  grip  as  for  my  life  !  A  moment's  stay  of  breath  ! 
One  spring  along  the  frightful  edge  !  The  crag  and 
the  chasm  were  passed,  and  I  and  my  guide  were  to- 
gether on  the  unchanging  rock — where  the  crown  of 
that  mountain  of  God  was  ours. 

"So  with  us  all,  as  we  clamber  the  steeps  of  earth, 
under  the  guidance  of  him  who  has  passed  every  step 
of  the  way  before.  When  at  last  our  narrow  path  is 
skirting  the  brink  of  the  yawning  grave,  and  the  for- 
bidding crag  of  death  juts  before  us,  and  we  reaHze, 
for  the  moment,  that  our  Guide  has  gone  over  beyond 
that  crag, — even  then  we  can  hear  the  voice  of  Jesus, 
calling  to  us  cheerily,  *  Come  unto  me  !  I  will  uphold 
thee  ! '    And,  clinging  with  the  grip  of  faith  to 

•Those  blessed  feet 
Which  eighteen  hundred  years  ago  were  nail'd 
For  our  advantage  on  the  bitter  cross,' 


504  Henry  Clay  Trumbull 

we  can,  with  one  instant's  bated  breath,  and  with  a 
single  swing  of  soul,  pass  beyond  death,  to  stand 
with  our  Guide  on  the  enduring  rock  of  the  eternal 
hills  of  God." 


APPENDIX  AND  INDEX 


Hbbress  of  XKHelcome 


to 

General  "im^s^ee  Grant 

ITS 

Cbaplain      Cla^  tTrumbuU 

At  the  Academy  of  Music,  Philadelphia, 
December  i8,  1879 

General  Grant: 

It  is  as  a  representative  of  George  G.  Meade  Post  One,  of 
the  Department  of  Pennsylvania,  that  I  am  deputed  to  second 
and  to  re-emphasize  the  welcome  to  you  of  the  Grand  Army 
of  the  Republic  to-night.  That  Post  is  honored  with  your 
membership — which  fact  alone  is  sufficient  to  give  the  Post 
a  place  in  history.  Moreover,  it  bears  the  name  and  cherishes 
the  fame  of  a  great  and  good  soldier  whom  you  confidently 
trusted,  and  to  whose  brilliant  services  the  nation  owes  a 
debt  of  gratitude  for  all  time  to  come.  As  a  representative 
of  that  Post  I  may  venture,  without  presumption,  to  crave 
the  indulgence  of  your  further  kind  hearing. 

It  is  true  that  other  words  of  welcome  than  the  eloquent 
and  fitting  ones  which  have  already  been  spoken  to  you,  might 
well  be  deemed  superfluous  to-night.  Indeed,  it  might  seem 
that  one  who  has  received  the  glad  greetings  of  all  the 
sovereigns  of  earth,  and  who  has  fairly  encircled  the  globe 
with  the  echo  of  his  praises,  would  tire  of  even  the  heartiest 
expressions  of  honor  or  esteem  that  could  come  to  him  from 
any  source,  or  by  any  person,  whatsoever.  But  no  true  man 
ever  tires  of  words  of  love  and  confidence  from  those  who 
are  dear  to  him.  And  as  you,  sir,  have  already  been  reminded, 
and  as  a  single  glance  about  you  would  have  assured  you, 

507 


5o8 


Appendix 


this  vast  assemblage  is  made  up  of  those  who  are  no  strangers 
to  you.  They  are  your  old  soldiers,  your  former  companions 
in  arms — "blood  relatives"  all ;  and  it  is  not  too  much  to  say 
that  they  are  very  dear  to  you.  You  depended  on  them,  and 
they  proved  true  to  you,  in  the  hour  of  need  to  you  and  to 
them — an  hour  of  need  to  our  nation  and  to  humanity. 
Because  then  you  were  capable,  and  they  were  trustworthy; 
you  had  success,  and  they  had  victory  and  its  rejoicings. 

A  Swiss  guide  piloting  a  party  of  tourists  up  one  of  the 
Alpine  peaks,  after  clambering  from  crag  to  crag,  reached  a 
table-land  elevation,  from  which  all  the  plain  below,  and  the 
path  from  it,  could  be  seen  distinctly.  Stopping  his  party 
there,  he  said  to  them:  "Here,  gentlemen,  is  the  place  to 
look  back!"  Such  a  table-land  as  that  we  have  reached  in 
this  hall  to-night.  Here  is  a  place  to  look  back.  Here  are 
men  from  well-nigh  every  field  where  you  did  service  and 
won  honor,  from  your  Bunker  Hill  at  Belmont  to  your  York- 
town-  at  Appomattox  Court  House.  How  can  they  help  look- 
ing back?  Meeting  you  again  face  to  face  they  cannot  but 
recall  afresh  those  days  when  you  were  all  the  world  to 
them;  when  you  held  their  lives  and  honor  in  your  keeping; 
when  on  your  sagacity,  your  courage,  and  your  fidelity  de- 
pended all  that  they  loved  or  lived  for — and  for  which  they 
were  ready  to  die. 

As  once  more  they  look  on  you,  and  on  those  dear  old 
flags  beside  you,  they  remember  how,  at  your  order  and  under 
your  lead,  they  followed  those  flags  in  the  storm  of  battle,  or 
stood  by  them  in  the  dreary  siege,  upholding  and  defending 
them  amid  the  shower  of  bullets  or  under  the  crash  of  burst- 
ing shell;  on  the  death-crowned  parapet  or  in  the  open  field, 
with  ringing  charge  and  counter-charge ;  or  on  the  weary 
march,  by  night  and  by  day,  in  summer's  heat  and  in  winter's 
cold, — until  the  weather-beaten,  tattered,  and  bullet-pierced 
remnant  of  those  flags  bear  mute  but  eloquent  witness  to  the 
true-hearted  devotion  of  those  soldiers  and  their  great  com- 
mander to  the  interests  of  that  country  which  under  God  he 
saved,  which  he  has  governed  so  wisely  and  represented 
everywhere  so  grandly,  and  of  which  he  stands  to-day  con- 
fessedly the  foremost,  best-loved  citizen. 

Bound  to  you,  sir,  by  such  sacred  ties  of  memory  and 


Appendix 


association,  these  old  soldiers  have  watched  you  in  your  world- 
wide wanderings  with  loving  interest,  and  have  shared  with  a 
feeling  of  grateful  pride  the  wide  world's  homage  to  your 
personal  services  and  worth,  and  to  your  representative  char- 
acter. They  who  were  one  with  you  in  your  struggles  and 
trials  are  one  with  you  in  your  triumph  and  its  rewards.  And 
now  that  you  are  once  more  among  them,  they  welcome  you 
back  with  the  emphatic  assurance  that  your  old  soldiers  will 
never  cease  to  give  you  love  and  honor  while  they  have  hearts 
and  memories. 

Ay,  more,  they  give  you  a  welcome  not  for  the  Grand 
Army  alone,  but  for  all  who  love  that  country  for  which  they 
risked  their  lives,  and  which  their  comrades  died  to  save. 
You  know,  sir,  that  our  organization  is  maintained  not  to 
perpetuate  our  enmities,  but  to  commemorate  our  devotedness ; 
not  to  recall  our  defeat  of  those  who  opposed  us,  but  to  keep 
fresh  in  mind  the  presers^ation  of  that  national  unity  which 
is  for  the  good  of  our  whole  people.  In  the  name,  then,  of 
your  own  Post  of  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  and  of 
every  lover  of  the  Grand  Republic  itself,  I  proffer  to  you  the 
hand  of  welcome ;  and  in  doing  this  I  pray  most  earnestly  and 
reverently.  May  God  bless  you,  General  Grant! 


prater  at  tbe  Uomb 


of 

(Beneral  'ini?00e0  6rant 

At  Riverside  Park,  New  York, 
August  8,  1885, 

3012  Cbaplatn  M.  Clag  ITrumbull 

Of  George  G.  Meade  Post  i,  G.  A.  R.,  and  of  the  Pennsylvania 
Commandery  of  the  Military  Order  of  the 
Loyal  Legion 

Our  Father  and  our  God,  as  we  stand  together  here,  in 
the  presence  of  the  solemnities  and  the  memories  and  the 
lessons  of  this  hallowed  hour,  we  realize  anew  that  all  power 
is  with  thee;  that  promotion  cometh  neither  from  the  East, 
nor  from  the  West,  nor  from  the  South;  but  thou  art  the 
Judge ;  thou  puttest  down  one,  and  thou  settest  up  another ; 
and  the  issues  of  life  and  of  death  are  at  thy  decree. 

We  praise  thee,  that,  in  thy  providence,  in  the  hour  of  our 
nation's  need,  thou  didst  raise  up,  for  a  mighty  work,  him 
whom,  together  here,  we  honor  and  we  mourn;  and,  out  of 
glad  and  grateful  hearts,  we  acknowledge  thy  goodness  in  all 
that  thou  didst  accomplish  in  and  through  him,  for  us,  for 
our  country,  and  for  the  cause  of  thy  truth. 

Remembering  the  anxious  days  when  he  was  all  in  all 
to  us,  under  thee,  we  rejoice  that,  by  thy  grace,  he  lived  his 
life  so  simply,  so  bravely,  so  grandly,  in  his  sphere;  and  that, 
in  the  least  and  in  the  greatest, — in  conflict,  in  council,  and 
in  daily  walk, — he  was  faithful  unto  death. 

And  now  we  beseech  of  thee,  O  Lord,  that,  by  thy  grace, 
thou  wilt  make  profitable  unto  us,  and  unto  our  country,  the 
lessons  of  this  faithful  and  fruitful  life. 
510 


Appendix 


Grant  comfort  unto  those  who  are  sore-stricken  by  this 
bereavement. 

Make  dearer  than  ever,  to  all,  the  interests  for  which  thy 
servant  stood  so  firmly. 

And  may  we  who  are  bound  together  by  the  ties  of  a 
common  experience,  under  the  earthly  leadership  of  him 
whose  worn  body  is  to-day  committed  tenderly  and  reverently 
to  the  tomb,  be  bound  together  by  a  yet  more  enduring  tie, 
in  the  loving  service  of  the  Greater  Commander,  our  Lord 
and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ,  who  is  the  Resurrection  and  the 
Life;  unto  whom,  with  the  Father  and  the  Holy  Spirit,  be 
praise  evermore.  Amen. 


INDEX 


Academy,  Stonington,  attending, 
38. 

Achievement,  nurtured  in  atmos- 
phere of,  3. 

Adams,  John  Quincy,  Gurdon 
Trumbull  appointed  postmaster 
by,  13;  seeing,  in  Stonington, 
23. 

Addresses:  at  first  Connecticut  S. 
S.  Convention,  117;  at  prayer 
meeting  in  Hartford,  96;  his 
first,  50;  his  first  convention, 
152;  methods  of  preparing  and 
delivering,  248;  on  temperance, 
51-53;  political,  style  of,  141, 
142. 

Advance,  The,  article  on  home 
training,  281;  article  on 
preaching,  to  children,  280. 

Aftermath  of  Kadesh,  347-360. 

Agreement,  seeking  points  of,  164. 

American  Chapel  in  Paris,  found- 
ing of,  125. 

American  Sunday  School  Union, 
appointing  H.  C.  T.  Normal 
Secretary,  289;  appointin_g  H. 
C.  T.  secretary  for  New  Eng- 
land Department,  237;  offering 
missionary  to  Connecticut,  158; 
origin  of,  150;  plan  of  mission- 
ary work,  159;  starting  The 
Sunday  School  Times,  167, 

Amy,  Francis,  as  clerk  of,  43. 

Apocrypha,  study  of,  in  Kadesh- 
barnea,  359. 

Appointment,  failing  to  keep,  170. 

Appreciative,  boundlessly,  502. 

Archaeological  Association,  Univer- 
sity of  Pennsylvania,  lectures 
to,  407. 

Army  of  the  James  Reunion,  ad- 
dressing, 250. 

As  a  Man  Among  Men,  463-488. 

Ashburner,  Samuel,  as  clerk  to,  75. 

Asylum  Hill  Congregational 
Church,  remarkable  member- 
ship of,  295. 

Athlete,  conversation  with,  449-450. 

"Atlantic,"  seeing  wreck  of,  63. 

Atonement,  teachings  about  the, 
501. 


'Ayn  el-Qadayrat,  search  for,  343. 

'Ayn  el-Waybeh,  Robinson's  opin- 
ion of,  336. 

'Ayn  Muwayleh,  mentioned,  339. 

'Ayn  Oadees,  considered  as  site  of 
Kadesh-barnea,  336;  guide's 
pretended  ignorance  of,  339. 

'Ayn  Qasaymeh,  finding,  344. 

'Azazimeh,  controlling  Kadesh  re- 
gion, 337;  in  crowd  of  fighting, 
347;  hostile  to  travelers,  338; 
meeting  caravan  of,  343. 

Babylonian  Exploration  Fund  of 
Philadelphia,  connection  with, 
481. 

Bacon,  the  Rev.  Leonard  Woolsey, 

Secretary  Home  Evangelization 

Committee,  169. 
Baker,    I.    Newton,   retiring  from 

editorship,  301. 
Bakhsheesh,    asking    from  Arabs, 

340. 

Baltimore  American,  The,  offered 
interest  in,  236. 

Bank:  cashiership  offered  in,  67; 
Ocean,  Gurdon  Trumbull  direc- 
tor of,  13:  Stonington,  clerk  in, 
43;  Stonington  Savings,  Gur- 
don Trumbull  incorporator  of, 
13. 

Bartlett,  President,  mentioned,  337; 

lied  to  by  Arabs,  340. 
Barton,   John  W.,   writing  sketch 

of,  238. 

Beaconsfield,  Gladstone's  reference 
to,  353- 

Beadle,    Elias   R.,    influenced  by, 

496;  mentioned,  1 1 1,  112,  496. 
"Bear-stories,"     David  Hawley's 

advice  about,  117. 
Beecher,    the    Rev.    Dr.  Lyman, 

quoted,  147;  taking  his  children 

to  Sunday-school,  149. 
Beerayn,  Wady,  seeking  for,  344. 
Beersheba,  mentioned,  347. 
Benediction  in  Jewish  Synagogue, 

467. 

Besant,  Walter,  visit  to,  352. 
Bethlehem,  passing  through,  348. 
Beyrout,  visiting,  349. 


512 


Index 


513 


Bible:  a  book  of  principles,  5,441; 
at  first  a  literalist  in  interpre- 
tation, 256;  stories  first  made 
attractive,  38;  from  Oriental 
viewpoint,  5. 

Bible  Class,  individual  work  in, 
379;  method  of  teaching,  379. 

Bingham,  Hiram,  mentioned,  493. 

"Blood  Covenant,  The,"  descrip- 
tion of,  369;  in  Last  Supper, 
368;  in  various  countries,  367; 
on  primitive  thought,  367; 
promise  of,  made  good  on  Cal- 
vary, 368;  Sayce's  estimate  of, 
480;  showing  significance  of 
atonement,  367. 

Board  of  Education,  Connecticut, 
offered  secretaryship  of,  239. 

Bonaparte,  tomb  of,  visit  to,  447. 

Book-agent,  dealing  with,  470. 

Books  for  children,  early  scarcity 
of,  150. 

"Border  Lines  in  the  Fiel-d  of 
Doubtful  Practices,"  descrip- 
tion of,  423. 

Bounty  jumpers.  226. 

Boyhood,  home  life  in,  13-14. 

Brace,  Charles  P.,  speaking  in 
Morgan  Street  ^fission,  105. 

Brainerd,  David,  visiting  grave 
of,  42. 

Breaking  down  in  1880,  328. 

Breakwater,  building  of  superin- 
tended by  Gurdon  Trumbull,  13. 

Briggs,  Dr.  Charles  A.,  opinion  of 
"The  Blood  Covenant,"  370. 

British  Museum,  visit  to,  448. 

"Brother  Jonathan,"  of  same  clan 
with,  II. 

Bruce,  King  Robert,  knighting  first 

Trumbull,  9. 
Buckingham,  Governor,  letter  from, 

143;   offered  position  on  staff 

of,  143- 

Building  railroads  and  character, 
T,  ^7-76.^ 

Bunce:  James  M.,  railroad  presi- 
dent, 68;  saying  concerning 
determined  man,  68;  Rear  Ad- 
miral F.  M.,  mentioned,  68. 

Bunker  Hill  celebration,  speak- 
ing at,  250. 

Burritt,  EHhu,  influenced  by,  24. 

Burnside,  Governor,  with  Grant  in 
parlor  of,  286. 

Bushnell,  Albert,  making  maps  for, 
29;  mentioned,  493. 

Bushnell,  Horace,  cause  of  oppo- 
sition to,  260;  characterization 
of,  25s;  distinctive  contribu- 
tion of,  2=;6:  first  meeting  with, 
256;  mentioned,  496;  on  im- 
portance of  Sunday-school,  259; 
quoted   in   letter   from  Henry 


Clay  Trumbull  to  mother,  94; 
urging  pastorate,  258;  way  of 
looking  at  truth,  264;  where 
Trumbull  could  not  follow,  261; 
sermon  entitled,  "  Every  Man's 
Life  a  Plan  of  God,"  mentioned, 
496. 

Business,  ideals  in,  315. 

Cairo,  arriving  at,  334. 

Camp,  Adjutant  Henry  Ward,  as- 
sistant superintendent  regimen- 
tal S.  S.,  188;  beginning  of 
friendship  with,  195;  death  of, 
228-230  ;  discussing  ethical  ques- 
tions with,  197;  entering  army, 
195;  reference  to,  413;  rejoin- 
ing regiment,  220;  released 
from  prison,  220. 

Campbell,  Colonel  Colin,  men- 
tioned, 334. 

Canaan,  mentioned,  335. 

Canvass,  in  charge  of  political, 
140. 

Capsized  boat,  boy's  remark  about, 
45. 

"Captured  Scout  of  the  Army  of 
the  James,"  issuing  book  en- 
titled, 238. 

Card  playing,  opinion  of,  426-427. 

Cards,  incident  of  pack  on  pulpit, 
186. 

Carpenter,  Judge  EHsha,  member 
of  Asylum  Hill  Church,  296. 

Cartwright,   Lady,   mentioned,  334. 

Castle  Nakhl,  arriving  at,  335;  fav- 
oring circumstances  at,  337. 

Centennial  Exposition,  Sunday 
closing  of,  303. 

Chamberlain,  Joseph,  visiting 
Gallaudet  College,  126. 

Chapel  of  the  Ascension,  encamped 
near,  348. 

Chaplain,  deciding  his  place  as, 
189;  looking  unlike  a,  214;  or- 
dained as,  186. 

Chaplain's  Aid  Commission,  tent 
given  by,  188. 

Charleston  jail,  prisoner  of  war 
in,  202. 

Chase,  Chief  Justice,  Grant's  re- 
mark about,  286. 

Chcsebrough,  Dr.  Nicholas,  taught 
by.  38. 

Chescbrough,  Miss  Fanny,  letter 
from,  38;  recollections  of.  45. 

Chescbrough,  William,  descended 
from,  10. 

Child,  death  of,  209. 

Chiidliood  conversion,  booklet  on, 
2.18. 

Children,  on  preaching  to,  280. 
"Children   in   the   Temple,"  book 
on,  238.  c 


> 


5H 


Index 


Childs,  George  W.,  helping  to  se- 
cure article,  310. 

Choate,  Rufus,  referring  to  Henry 
F.  Durant,  283. 

"Christian's  'Good  Night,'  The," 
sung  at  funeral,  499. 

Church,  influence  in  Walnut  Street 
Presbyterian,  477. 

Church  of  England  S.  S.  Insti- 
tute, 354. 

Church,  Second  Congregational  in 
Stonington,  44. 

Church,  uniting  with,  95. 

Citizen,  public  service  as,  324. 

Clark,  Clarence  H.,  reference  to, 
452- 

Clark,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Thomas  M., 
sermon  by,  136. 

Clark,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Joseph,  men- 
tioned, 319. 

Clark,  William  S.,  schoolmate  of, 
40. 

Clark,  the  Rev.  Samuel  W.,  on 
The  Sunday  School  Times,  319. 

Clarke,  Canon,  hearing  in  West- 
minster, 332. 

Clemens,  Samuel  L.,  entertaining 
in  Philadelphia,  469;  member  of 
Asylum  Hill  Church,  295;  ref- 
erence to  J.  Hammond  Trum- 
bull 15; 

Clerc,  Laurent,  teacher  of  deaf- 
mutes,  125. 

Clift,  the  Rev.  William,  mentioned, 
44. 

Cogswell:  Alice,  pupil  of  Gallau- 
det,  125;  Dr.  Mason  F.,  men- 
tioned, 125. 

College,  answer  to  question  about, 
37. 

College  education  prevented,  67. 

Colorado,  visit  to,  452. 

Colored  boy  in  Morgan  Street  Mis- 
sion, 115. 

Colquitt,  Governor,  writing  for 
The  Sunday  School  Tirnes,  309. 

Columbia,  removed  to  jail  in,  206. 

Courtesy  invariable,  376. 

Comstock,  Anthony,  quoted,  218. 

Conditions,  religious  in  Connecti- 
cut, 155. 

Congregationalist,  The,  on  church 
supporting  Sunday-schools,  282. 

Connecticut  Sunday-school  Associ- 
ation reorganized,  258. 

Connecticut  State  S.  S.  Conven- 
tion, first,  117- 

Connecticut  State  Sabbath-school 
Teachers'  Association  organ- 
ized, 153. 

Constable  and  collector,  not  elected 
for  office  of,  141. 

Convention:  Connecticut  State 
report  to,  175;    early  Sunday- 


school,  151;  Fifth  National, 
call  for,  290;  first  Maine 
State,  speaking  at,  168;  First 
National  referred  to,  316;  Mer- 
cer County,  N.  J.,  speaking  at, 
168;  National  Sunday-school, 
first  secretary  of,  in  1859,  167; 
New  Hampshire  State,  attend- 
ing, 168;  Second  Connecticut 
State  Sunday-school,  156. 

Conversion,  through  letter  from 
friend,  82. 

Conwell,  Dr.  Russell  H.,  reference 
to,  459. 

Cook,  Canon,  mentioned,  452. 

Cook,  Joseph,  referring  to  Henry 
F.  Durant,  284. 

Cooke,  Rose  Terry,  member  of 
Asylum  Hill  Church,  295 ;  say- 
ing of,  about  system,  248. 

Copying  press,  breaking,  135. 

Coral  insect,  study  of,  118. 

Corliss,  George  H.,  on  Sunday 
closing  of  Centennial,  304. 

Correcting  Common  Errors  about 
Bible  Truths,  433-442. 

Courage,  Arabs'  shamed  by  Ameri- 
can, 341. 

"Covenant  of  Salt,  The,"  Sayce's 
reference  to,  481. 

Crosby,  Chancellor  Howard,  men- 
tioned, 321. 

Curry,  Dr.  J.  L.  M.,  helping  to 
secure  article,  309;  mentioned, 
321. 

Cuyler,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Theodore  L-, 
quoted,  109. 

Dana,  Richard  H.,  influenced  by, 
25;   on  platform  with,  250. 

Dana,  the  Rev.  Stephen  W.,  char- 
acterization by,  477;  mentioned, 
299;  speaking  at  funeral,  500, 

Dancing,  discussion  of,  428. 

Daring  the  impossible,  299-312. 

"Dashed  off"  editorial  note  re- 
jected, 327. 

Death,  on  December  8,  1903,  498. 

Delitzsch,  Professor  Franz,  con- 
sulting, 370. 

Deming,  Henry  C,  urging  first  po- 
litical speech,  138. 

Denison,  Captain  George,  descend- 
ant of,  10. 

Dennis,  Rodney,  first  Superintend- 
ent Morgan  Street  Mission, 
104. 

Denomination,  question  as  to  con- 
nection with,  165;  Trumbull's 
description  of  his,  300. 

Depravity,  opinion  of,  as  to  coun- 
try districts,  169-170. 

De  Pressense,  Edmond,  mentioned, 
321. 


Index 


515 


Deserter,  ministering  to,  226;  in- 
fluencing Lincoln's  proclama- 
tion about,  228. 

Detachment,  power  of,  267. 

Determination:  in  securing  arti- 
cles, 309;  James  M.  Bunce's 
saying,  68. 

Determining  the  Border  Lines, 
419-430. 

Developing  others,  faculty  of,  320. 
Devotion  of  men  to  Chaplain,  192. 
Deaf,  American  Asylum  for  the, 

Dictionary,  saying  concerning,  327. 

Dispensary,  clerk  in,  43. 

Doge  of   Venice,   Antonio  Priuli, 

ancestor    of     the  Gallaudets, 

125. 

Dothan,  luncheon  at,  347. 
"Doubts   and    Doubters,    How  to 

Deal  with,"  completing  book  on, 

497- 

Dow,  General  Neal,  meeting  in 
Libby,  211. 

Dresden,  and  the  Sistine  Ma- 
donna, 447. 

Drummond,  Henry,  breakfast  with, 
386;  compared  with,  465;  esti- 
mate of  D.  L.  Moody,  386. 

Du  Bois,  Patterson,  quoted,  396; 
urged  to  criticise  Trumbull's 
writings,  393- 

Dulles,  the  Rev.  Allen  M.,  com- 
panion on  trip  to  East,  334. 

Dunkard  minister,  story  of,  463. 

Durant,  Henry  F.,  acquaintance 
with,  283;  likeness  to  Apostle 
John,  284;  speaking  name  of 
Jesus,  284;  visit  to  Trumbull 
home,  284. 

Dying  boy  in  "Yankee  Hospital," 
203-204. 

Early  Literary  Tendencies,  49-64. 

Editor,  accepting  position  of,  294. 

Editorials,  hard  work  on,  328. 

Editorial  work,  first  attempt,  53-57. 

Eggleston,  Edward,  resigning  from 
Executive  Committee  of  Na- 
tional S.  S.  Convention,  289; 
editor  of  The  National  Teacher, 
288. 

Egyptian  records,  study  of,  359. 

Ellicott,  Bishop  Charles  T.,  inter- 
view with,  353-355.  356;  men- 
tioned, 321. 

Ely,  James  B.,  incident  of  interest 
in,  376. 

Emancipation  Proclamation,  an- 
swering questions  about,  189. 

Encouraging  pastors,  246. 

England,  sailing  for,  332. 

En-mishpat,  name  for  Kadesh-bar- 
nca,  336. 


Enmities,  freedom  from,  283. 
Ensign,  F.  G.,  Quoted,  241. 
Entering  Army  Life  (in   1862),  175- 
192. 

Enthusiasm  showing  in  spite  of  ill- 
ness, 446. 
Evangelizing,  God's  chosen  way  of, 
492. 

Evans,  Thomas  C,  consulting  with 
concerning  editorship,  294. 

Every-day  life,  student  of,  185. 

"Every  Man's  Life  a  Plan  of 
God,"  Bushnell's  sermon  cited, 
496. 

"Excess,  a  Victim  of,"  458. 

Executive  Comrhittee  National  S. 
S.  Convention,  chosen  chair- 
man of,  289-290. 

Exegesis,  first  independent  attempt 
at,  259. 

Exploding  shell,  escape  from,  221. 
Exposition,  Centennial,  activity  in 

plans  for,  303. 
Expositor,  London,  on  "The  Blood 

Covenant,"  370. 
Expression,  gift  of,  49. 
Extinguisher,  The,  55. 

Family,  His,  9-18. 

I'amily,  origin  of  Trumbull,  9. 

"Father  of  the  Family,"  called  by 

Arabs,  338. 
Farrar,   Canon,   hearing  in  West- 
minster, 332;   mentioned,  334. 
Faribault,    Alexander,  mentioned, 

290. 

Feeling,  worthlessness  of,  in  turn- 
ing to  Christ,  92. 

Fellow-boarder,  memorable  talk, 
with,  99. 

Fergusson,  the  Rev.  E.  M.  quoted, 
395- 

Field,   Samuel,   helping  to  secure 

article,  310. 
Field  work,  letting  go,  300. 
Finding  of  Kadesh-bamea   (in  1881), 

33»-344- 

Finney,  Charles  G.,  influenced  by. 
89-92;  mentioned,  496;  personal 
characteristics,  87,  88;  preach- 
ing in  Hartford,  81;  remark  to 
young  men,  88;  attending  meet- 
ing of.  89:  views  of  feelings  as 
a  guide.  92. 

First  Church  in  Hartford,  account 
cf,  95- 

Five  Points  Mission,  organization 
of,  T05. 

Flag,  hoisting,  during  Clay  cam- 
paign, 31. 

Florida,  trip  to.  268. 

"For  all  the  Saints,"  hymn  sung 
at  funeral,  499- 

Force  Bill,  letters  concerning,  251. 


Index 


Founding  his  first  Sunday-school, 
163.  . 

"Fountain  of  God's  Power,"  name 
for  Kadesh,  344. 

Fountain  of  Judgment,  name  for 
Kadesh,  336. 

Fowler,  Sophia,  wife  of  Thomas 
Hopkins  Gallaudet,  126. 

Freed  slaves  learning  to  read,  198. 

Fremont  Club,  signing  roll  of,  141. 

Fremont,  General  and  Mrs.,  call- 
ing on,  142;  Mrs.  Jessie  Ben- 
ton, quoted,  143. 

Friendship,  teaching  men  nature 
of,  500. 

"Friendship  the  Master  Passion," 
beginning  work  on,  366;  ac- 
count of,  408,  409;  sources  of 
material,  366,  408,  409. 

Funeral  service,  Robert  E.  Speer's 
address  at,  500. 

"Gain  of  the  Higher  Side,"  430. 

Gallaudet;  Alice  Cogswell,  men- 
tioned in  letter  from  H.  C.  T., 
129;  giving  piano  lessons,  131; 
her  unselfishness,  129;  marriage 
with  H.  Clay  Trumbull,  132; 
teacher  in  Morgan  Street  Mis- 
sion, 132;  Edward  M.,  in  Mor- 
gan Street  Mission,  104;  presi- 
dent Gallaudet  College,  126; 
the  Rev.  Thomas  H.,  suggest- 
ing City  Mission  Society,  103; 
account  of  work  of,  123,  125; 
the  Rev.  Thomas,  rector  of  St. 
Ann's  Church  for  deaf  mutes, 
126. 

"Garfield     University,"  editorial 

room  a  veritable,  393. 
Gaza,  mentioned,  335,  337. 
Geikie,     Cunningham,     on  "The 

Blood  Covenant,"  370. 
Geistweit,  Dr.  W.  H.,  characteriza- 
tion by,  327. 
Generous,  boundlessly,  502. 
Gerizim,  Mount,  seeing  Samaritan 

Passover  on,  349. 
Gillette:  Senator  Francis,  member 

of  Asylum   Hill   Church,  295; 

William,    member    of  Asylum 

Hill  Church,  295. 
Gilman,  Daniel  C,  leading  singing 

in  Morgan  Street  Mission,  117; 

Trumbull   sought   as  successor 

to,  239. 

Gladstone,  hearing  in  House  of 
Commons,  353;  speech  on  Irish 
Land  Bill,  353. 

Gleason,  Alfred  W.,  mentioned, 
104. 

Godet,  Professor  Frederic,  esti- 
mate of  "The  Blood  Covenant," 
370;  mentioned,  321. 


Goodwin,  Mrs.  Alice,  quoted,  105. 

Goodyear,  General  E.  D.  S., 
quoted,  223;  talking  with  about 
deserter,  227. 

Gordon,  Senator  John  B.,  letter 
from,  252;   writing  to,  251. 

Grandchildren,  playing  with,  495; 
prayer  of,  499;  welcoming  to 
upper  room,  498. 

Grant,  General  U.  S.,  address  at 
funeral  of,  see  Appendix;  at 
dedication  of  mausoleum,  485; 
first  meeting  with,  285;  first 
sight  of,  221;  funeral  of,  485; 
in  private  car  of,  287;  message 
to  The  Sunday  School  Times, 
307;  of  same  ancestry  with,  10; 
sensitiveness,  287;  sense  of  re- 
sponsibility in  command,  286; 
soldier  recognizing,  222;  speech 
of  two  words,  287;  welcoming 
to  Philadelphia,  324. 

Green,  William  Henry,  estimate  of 
"The  Blood  Covenant,"  369. 

Guidance,  discerning  God's,  274. 

Guide,  saved  by  on  Sinai,  503. 

Guided  to  the  Editorial  Chair, 
279-296. 

Hajj  Route  mentioned,  335. 

Hall,  Professor  Isaac  H.,  on  The 
Sunday  School  Times,  319. 

Hall,  Rev.  Newman,  visiting  Sun- 
day-schools of,  333. 

Hamdh,  as  desert  guide,  338;  con- 
senting to  turn  aside  toward 
Kadesh,  341. 

Hamlin,  Cyrus,  mentioned,  493. 

Hardy,  Commodore  T.  M.,  attacks 
Stonington,  12;  receiving  Gur- 
don  Trumbull  on  flagship,  12. 

Harper,  Professor  W.  R.,  estimate 
of  "The  Blood  Covenant,"  369; 
invited  to  lecture  by,  367. 

Hart,  _  Professor  John  S.,  first 
editor  of  The  Sunday  School 
Times,  167;    mentioned,  316. 

Hartford,  city  of  culture  and 
ideals,  295;  preparing  to  leave, 
295. 

Hartford  Courant,  writing  for, 
237. 

Hartranft,  Governor,  writing  for 
The  Sunday  School  Times,  310. 

Haven,  Henry  P.,  preparing  biog- 
raphy of,  323. 

Hawes,  Dr.  Joel,  personal  charac- 
teristics of,  95. 

Hawley:  David,  engaged  as  city 
missionary,  103;  influenced  by, 
106;  way  of  putting  hand  on 
boy's  head,  110;  mentioned.  406; 
quoted  on  Trumbull's  business 
changes,    144;    General  Joseph 


Index 


517 


R.,  Chairman  Centennial  Com- 
mission, 303;  inviting  Trumbull 
to  meet  Grant,  285;  letter  from, 
252;  member  of  the  Asylum 
Hill  Church,  295;  writing  for 
The  Sunday  School  Times,  307; 
urging  pastorate,  258;  writing 
to,  251. 

Hawley,       W.,  letter  to,  488. 
Hayes,  President,  writing  for  The 

Sunday  School  Times,  309. 
"Haystack  Band,"  mentioned,  79. 
Haywat  tribe,  mentioned,  337. 
Head,  value  of  a,  488. 
Heaven,  grandson's  inquiry  about, 

499. 

Hebron,  entering  Palestine  by  way 
of,  347;  mentioned,  335;  urg- 
ing route  to,  338. 

Hedayah,  Muhammad  Ahmad,  en- 
gaged as  dragoman,  334. 

Henpecked  husband,  story  of,  142. 

Heroes  of  the  Stonington  Days, 
21-34. 

Hilprecht,  Professor  Herman  V., 
characterization  by,  481;  join- 
ing staflf  of  The  Sunday  School 
Times,  370. 

"Hints  on  Child  Training,"  men- 
tioned, 407. 

Holland,  the  Rev.  F.  W.,  men- 
tioned, 332,  340,  359. 

Holliday,  Governor,  writing  for 
The  Sunday  Scliool  Times,  309. 

Home  Evangelization  Committee, 
.  assisting  work  of,  169. 

Home  life  in  boyhood,  13-14. 

"Hopeless  case,"  dealing  with,  in 
army,  219. 

Hopkins,  Mark,  as  guest,  469. 

Hotel  des  Invalides,  impressions 
of,  447. 

Howard,  General  O.  O.,  character- 
ization by,  484. 

Hoyt,  Governor,  mentioned,  324. 

Huey,  Samuel  B.,  mentioned,  398. 

Hull,  Commodore,  seeing  in  boy- 
hood, 23. 

Hymnology,  modern  Sunday- 
school,  first  acquaintance  with, 
116. 

Hypnotism,  practise  of,  49. 

Ibraheen,  as  desert  guide,  338. 
Ideals  in  business,  315. 
Impossibilities,  Icarninp  to  do,  34. 
In  School  and  Out,  37-46. 
In  the   Home  of  the  Gallaudets, 

"In   Tribulation,"  scope  of  book, 

454-456. 
Incentives,  grateful  for,  407. 
Individual    work    for  individuals, 

conversation    with    student  at 


Northfield,  385;  difficulty  of 
doing,  268;  in  closing  years  of 
life,  497;  most  widely  circulated 
of  his  books,  366;  most  fruitful 
endeavor,  492;  resolve  to  do, 
100;  speaking  at  Northfield, 
384;  with  man  in  Florida,  269; 
writing  book  on,  492. 

Influence  on  others,  463. 

Inkstand  incident,  75. 

Inspiration  and  revelation  defined, 
472-473. 

Insurance  Company,  offered  posi- 
tion by,  239. 

International  Lesson  System,  men- 
tioned, 301;.  woman's  remark 
about,  301. 

Introspection,  overcoming,  86. 

Jackson,  President  Andrew,  see- 
ing in  boyhood,  22. 

Jastrow,  Rabbi  Marcus,  invited  by, 
to  pronounce  benediction,  467; 
opinion  of  "The  Threshold 
Covenant,"  454. 

Jayne's  Hall,  National  S.  S.  Con- 
vention in,  167;  referred  to, 
316. 

Jebel  Muwayleh,  encamped  near, 
339- 

Jerusalem,  arriving  at,  348. 

Jewell,  Governor  Marshall,  letter 
from,  252;  member  of  Asylum 
Hill  Church,  295;  writing  to, 
251. 

Jewish  Messenger,  The,  mentioned, 
468. 

Jews,  relations  with,  466,  468. 

Journal  and  Times,  issued  in  Ston- 
ington by  Samuel  Trumbull,  11. 

Joy  in  religious  life,  98. 

Judson,  Adoniram,  mentioned, 
493;  seeing  in  boyhood,  28. 

Kadesh-barnea,  American  deter- 
mination in  search  for,  339- 
341;  choosing  route  near,  335; 
circumstances  of  writing  book 
o"»  371.  372;  controversies 
over  site  of,  336;  difficultv  of 
access  to,  337;  Dulles,  the  Rev. 
Allen  M.,  conipauion  on  jour- 
ney, 334;  favoring  circum- 
stances near,  337;  Guthe's  pub- 
lication of  extracts  from  book 
on,  360;  historical  significance 
of.  335;  preparing  volume  on, 
357.  360:  rediscovery  of,  342; 
Saycc's  opinion  of  book  '  on, 
360;  suggestion  of  Henry  C. 
McCook.  331;  Wattles.  George 
H.,  companion  on  journey,  332. 

Kansas-Nebraska  l?ill,  reporting 
meeting  on,  139. 


5i8 


Index 


Karlsbad,  regimen  and  rest,  459; 
sailing  for,  446;  visit  to,  450- 
451. 

Kendrick,  Professor  A,  C,  en- 
gaged for  The  Sunday  School 
Times,  308. 

Kidron,  the  brook,  encamped  near, 
348. 

Kimball,  Edward,  meeting,  68. 

Kindness,  embodiment  of,  477. 

Kipling,  Rudyard,  quoted,  496. 

"Knightly  Soldier,  The,"  prepar- 
ing story  of,  235. 

Knowledge,  estimate  of  his  own, 
37. 

Kosher  food,  at  reception  to  Ori- 
ental Society,  468. 

lyANGDON,  George,  quoted,  171. 

I^anguage,  studies  in,  357;  pecu- 
liarities in  use  of,  395. 

Lathrop,  Harriet,  overcoming  op- 
position to  Sunday-school,  148. 

I^each,  Miss  Georgie,  mentioned, 
395- 

I^earning  to  See  Spiritual  Truth, 
255-264. 

I^ectures,  at  Summer  School  of 
Hebrew  on  Blood  Covenant, 
367;  at  University  of  Penn- 
sylvania, on  Oriental  social  life, 
407;  at  Yale,  on  Oriental  social 
life,  407;  at  Yale,  on  Sunday- 
school,  377. 

I^etters:  from  father  about  conver- 
sion, 86;  from  mother  about 
his  conversion,  85,  92;  from 
mother  about  working  too  hard, 
70;  from  Mount  Sinai,  334.; 
on  revelation  and  inspiration, 
472;  read  at  Semi-Centennial  of 
the  Hartford  City  Missionary 
Society,  119;  to.  a  friend,  on 
assurance  of  God's  help,  416; 
to  Am.  S.  S.  Union  about 
dating  letters,  240;  to  Am. 
S.  S.  Union  about  founding 
his  first  Sunday-school,  163; 
to  Am.  S.  S.  Union  about 
finding  time  to  pray,  164;  to 
Am.  S.  S.  Union  about  offer  of 
salaried  position  on  State  Re- 
publican Committee,  168;  to 
Am.  S.  S.  Union  about  stop- 
ping missionary  from  writing, 
240;  to  brother  editor  about 
friendship,  480;  to  Canadian 
correspondent,  394;  to  father 
about  Christian  friends,  98;  to 
missionary  secretary  Am.  S.  S. 
Union,  161,  162,  163,  164;  to 
member  of  family  about  cheer- 
fulness in  religion,  98;  to 
mother    about   Alice  Cogswell 


Gallaudet,  129;  to  mothei 
about  his  conversion,  84,  88, 
93>  97;  to  mother  about  the 
Gallaudets,  124;  to  mother  con- 
cerning brother's  Sunday-school 
work,  93 ;  to  mother  concern- 
ing railroad  work,  69,  70,  71; 
to  L.  W.  Hawley  about  old  man 
teaching  grandson,  488;  to 
Mrs.  Trumbull  about  close  con- 
finement as  prisoner  of  war, 
205;  to  Mrs.  Trumbull  about 
death  of  child,  209;  to  Mrs. 
Trumbull  about  first  experience 
under  fire,  191;  to  Mrs.  Trum- 
bull about 'his  change  in  appear- 
ance, 191;  to  Mrs.  Trumbull 
about  individual  work  on  trans- 
port, 187;  to  Mrs.  Trumbull 
about  trip  to  East,  352;  to  Mrs. 
Trumbull  expressing  admira- 
tion for  Henry  Ward  Camp, 
197;  to  R.  E.  Speer  on  anni- 
versary of  Mrs.  Trumbull's 
death,  412,  413;  to  the  Rev.  Dr. 
de  Schweinitz,  on  lying,  473; 
to  R.  E.  Speef  on  appreciation 
of  Speer's  views  of  truth,  414; 
to  Sunday-school  workers  in 
Connecticut,  159. 

Lewis,  Prof.  Tayler,  secured  for 
The  Sunday  School  Times,  320. 

Libby  Prison,  experiences  in,  211- 
213. 

Libraries,  Sunday-school,  begin- 
ning of,  150. 

Lie,  answering  question  about, 
473. 

Lie  ever  justifiable?  Is  a,  contro- 
versy on  question,  420. 

"Lie  Never  Justifiable,  A,"  writing 
book  on,  421. 

Life,  teaching  men  nature  of,  500. 

Lights  and  Shadows  of  an  Old 
Time  Mission  School,  103-120. 

Literalism,  led  away  from,  257. 

Living  the  Life  of  Prayer,  z^t-z-jS. 

London,  first  Sunday  in,  332;  sec- 
ond visit  to,  352;  third  visit 
to,  451. 

Lotz,  Dr.  Wilhelm,  mentioned, 
370. 

Loyal  Legion,  office  in,  485. 
Lucerne,  Trumbull  near  death  at, 
450. 

"Lux  Mundi,"  first  paper  edited 
by  Trumbull,  53. 

MacVeagh,  the  Honorable  Wayne, 
and  shepherd's  pipe,  468.  _ 

McClellan,  George  B.,  mentioned, 
334;  writing  for  The  Sunday 
School  Times,  309. 

McCook,  Rev.  Dr.  Henry  C,  sug- 


Index 


519 


gesting  study  of  Oriental  prob- 
lem, 331. 

Major,  promotion  to  rank  of, 
urged,  224. 

Manuscript,  finding  through 
prayer,  270. 

Map-closet,  praver  in,  83. 

"Marked    Books,"    A   Writer  of, 

Marriage  with  Alice  Cogswell  Gal- 

laudet,  132. 
Master  of  Arts,  given  degree  of, 

by  Yale  College,  238. 
Massachusetts,  canvass  of  western 

counties  of,  237. 
Meade    Post    i.    General  Grant 

member  of,  324. 
Memory    of    younger    days,  493; 

Trumbull's  remarkable,  24. 
Mercantile    pursuits  unattractive, 

169. 

Mike  Collins,  incident  of  meeting, 
242. 

Military  School,  sought  as  teacher 
in,  236. 

Miller,  the  Rev.  J.  R.,  opinion  of 
Trumbull's  works,  457. 

Milman,  quoted  concerning  Ka- 
desh-barnea,  336. 

Milner,  the  Rev.  Duncan  C,  letter 
to,  on  temperance  problem,  466. 

Mind,  seeking  centers  and  founda- 
tions, 4. 

Ministry   to   Individuals,  375-388. 
Missionaries,  remembered,  493. 
Missions,  our  debt  to,  494. 
Missionary  associations  organized, 
79- 

Missionary  work,  beginning  of, 
158. 

Mixing  Politics  and  Religion,  135- 
144. 

"Mizpah,"  meaning  of,  436. 

"Model  Superintendent,  The,"  pre- 
paring sketch,  323. 

Moffatt,  Robert,  mentioned,  493. 

Moody:  D.  L.,  estimate  of  Henry 
Drummond,  386;  Drummond's 
opinion  of,  386;  mentioned, 
321;  with  at  Northfield,  386; 
remark  on  The  Sunday  School 
Times  as  mission  field,  419; 
Mrs.  W.  R.,  tribute  to  Trum- 
bull, 387. 

Moosa,  Shaykh,  under  escort  of, 
334. 

Morgan  Street  Mission,  addressed 
by  Charles  P.  Brace,  lo.s;  "Big 
John"  Cunningham,  113;  boy 
who  knew  head  from  tail  of  a 
cent,  113;  boys  who  wanted 
to  be  trained,  114;  chosen 
superintendent  of,  104;  col- 
ored boy,  "wrong  end  down," 


110;  colored  boy  saved  in,  115; 
convinced  of  value  of  Sunday- 
school  by,  109;  Daniel  C.  Gil- 
man  leading  singing  in,  117; 
first  view  of,  107;  helping  boy 
of  the  streets,  108;  mastering 
language,  iii;  opening  of,  104; 
police  never  called,  11 1;  varied 
nationality,  1 1 1 ;  resigning 
from,  160;  weekly  teachers'- 
meeting,  118. 

"Moral  and  Social  Union,"  136. 

"Moral  Color  Blindness,"  sermon 
on,  383. 

Moses  at  Kadesh-barnea,  335. 

Mott,  John  R.,  at  student  confer- 
ence, 386;  characterization  by, 
464,  465. 

"Mu'azzin's  cry,"  hearing  the,  349. 

Muhammad  Ahmad  Effendi  He- 
dayah,  desire  to  appear  in  book, 
341. 

Museum,  Trumbull-Prime,  at 
Princeton,  16. 

Musleh,  Shaykh,  anxiety  of,  con- 
cerning Arab  prisoner,  338; 
unavailable  as  escort,  337. 

Mustered  out  of  army  service,  231. 

"My  Four  Religious  Teachers," 
completing  book  on,  496. 

NABtus,  observing  Samaritan  Pass- 
over near,  349. 

Nakhl  Castle,  arriving  at,  335. 

Name,  study  of  the,  259. 

Napier,  John  T.,  assistant  to 
Trumbull,  358;  tribute  to,  358. 

"Now  I  lay  me  down  to  sleep," 
499. 

Napoleon,  tomb  of,  visited,  447. 

National  Teacher,  The,  call  to  edi- 
torial chair  of,  288. 

Nelson,  Lord,  couch  on  which  he 
died  seen  by  Gurdon  Trumbull, 
12. 

"New  birth,"  convictions  concern- 
ing the,  438. 

New  England  Department  Am.  S. 
S.  Union,  appointed  secretary 
for,  237. 

New  Jersey  Sunday  School  Asso- 
ciation, mentioned,  319. 

New  York  Sunday  School  Union, 
sought  as  secretary  of.  236. 

Normal  Secretary,  appointed  by 
the  Am.  S.  S.  Union,  289. 

Northcotc.  Sir  Stafford.  Glad- 
stone's reference  to,  354. 

Northfield.  preaching  at,  383. 

Norwich  Packet,  edited  and  pub- 
lished by  John  Trumbull,  11. 

Nott,  Samuei,  Jr.,  mentioned,  80; 
Samuel.  3rd.  fellow-worker  in 
R.  R.  office.  80. 


520 


Index 


Oil,  saying  concerning,  279. 
Old    Testament    Student,  quoted, 
369- 

"Old  Time  Student  Volunteers," 
book  on  memories  of,  493. 

Olives,  Mount  of,  encamped  on, 
348. 

Opportunities,  wishing  he  had  bet- 
ter improved,  496. 

Oratory,  style  of,  180. 

Ordained  as  chaplain,  186. 

Organ  grinder,  kindness  to,  491. 

Oriental  Club,  president  of,  467. 

Oriental   hospitality,  347. 

Oriental  names,  phonetic  spelling 
of,  395- 

"Oriental  Social  Life,"  lectures  to 
Yale  Semitic  Club,  407. 

Oriental  viewpoint,  5. 

Otis,  Colonel,  acting  as  aide  to, 
221. 

Ould,  Judge,  order  of  release  from 

war  prison,  214. 
Owdy,    shamming   ignorance^  near 

Kadesh-barnea,  339;  refusing  to 

guide   tp    Kadesh-barnea,  340; 

discovering  hostile  caravan,  343. 

Palestine  Exploration  Fund,  ac- 
covmt  of  rediscovery  of  Kadesh- 
barnea,  in  Quarterly  Statement 
of,  352. 

Palmer,  Captain  Nat,  discoverer 
of  "Palmer's  Land,"  33;  teach- 
ing Trumbull  to  do  the  impos- 
sible, 34. 

Palmer,  Dr.  George  welcoming 
President  Tyler,  22. 

Palmer,  Miss  Emma,  giving  inci- 
dent of  James  McNeill  Whis- 
tler, 28. 

Palmer,  John,  mentioned,  354. 

Palmer,  Prof.  Edward  H.,  men- 
tioned, 337;  his  search  for 
Kadesh-barnea,  352,  359. 

Palmer,  Walter,  descended  from, 
10. 

"Paradoxes,  Practical,"  book  on, 
399;  delighting  in  paradoxes, 
400. 

Paragraphs,  plan  of  editorial,  326. 
Paralysis,  suffering  stroke  of,  446. 
"Parley,  Peter,"  seeing   in  youth, 
26. 

Parmelee,  Corporal  J.  E-,  quoted, 
224. 

Part  greater  than  the  Whole,  399. 

Passion  for  Rightness,  A,  391-400. 

Passover,  Samaritan,  on  Mount 
Gerizim,  349.  350-351- 

Pastorate  offered  in  Baptist 
cliurch.  165. 

Paxson,  Stephen,  holding  conven- 
tions, 151. 


Peace  meeting,  citizens'  warning  to 

chairman  of,  171. 
Peltz,    the    Rev.    Dr.    George  A., 

editorial    incidents    from,  320; 

praying  for  Centennial  Sunday 

closing,  303. 
Pepper,    Dr.    William,  arranging 

with  about  Hilprecht,  370. 
Petition    by    brigade    officers  for 

Trumbull's  promotion,  231. 
Phelps,  Miss  Antoinette,  co-worker 

in  Morgan  Street  Mission,  104. 
Phelps,  President  Austin,  engaged 

for  The  Sunday  School  Times, 

308;  mentioned,  321. 
Philadelphia,   Babylonian  Explora- 
tion Fund  of,  481. 
Philadelphia,  remark  upon  moving 

to,  296. 

Philadelphia,  West,  characteristics 
of,  299. 

Phillips,  Wendell,  commending 
Charles  Edward  Trumbull  as 
orator,  17. 

Phrenologist,  incident  of  exam- 
ining Trumbull's  head,  62. 

Pierson,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Arthur  T., 
quoted,  178-180. 

Piatt,  Senator  Orville  H.,  quoted, 
142. 

Politics,  Gurdon  Trumbull's  activ- 
ity in,  30;  youthful  interest 
in,  31-32. 

Porter,  E.  Payson,  319. 

Post,  Hartford  Evening,  sought  as 
editor  of,  144. 

Poster,  drawn  in  boyhood,  39. 

Postmaster,  Gurdon  Trumbull  ap- 
pointed by  John  Quincy 
Adams,  13. 

Power  through  Sensitiveness,  403- 
416. 

Power,  pulpit,  secret  of,  248;  se- 
cret of  in  individual  work,  270. 

Practical  Idealist  at  Work,  315- 
328. 

"Practical  Paradoxes,"  representa- 
tive essays,  399. 

Prayer,  about  The  Sunday  School 
Times,  302;  answer  to  after 
accidental  shooting,  273;  belief 
in,  118;  concerning  call  to 
editorship  of  The  Sunday 
School  Times,  293;  for  snow, 
119;  account  of  book  on,  454- 
455;  normal  relationship  with 
God,  272. 

Preaching  in  Asylum  Hill  Church, 
244. 

Preface  to  Revised  New  Testa- 
ment, influenced  by  The  Sun- 
day School  Times,  355. 

Preston,  E.  B.,  publishing  sketch 
of,  238. 


Index 


521 


Prime,  William  C,  brother-in-law 
of,  16;  in  library  of,  358; 
helping  to  secure  article  for 
The  Sunday  School  Times,  310. 

Princeton,  speaking  at,  385. 

"Principles  and  Practice,"  account 
of  essays  on,  399. 

Principles,  Bible  a  book  of,  5,  441 ; 
constant  search  for,  4. 

Prisoner  of  war,  finally  released, 
212;  in  close  confinement,  204; 
letter  about  death  of  his  child, 
209-210;  lodged  in  Charleston 
jail,  201 ;  making  pencil  sketches, 
207;  meeting  General  Neal 
Dow  in  the  Libby,  211;  preach- 
ing to  prisoners,  206;  released 
from  Columbia,  210;  removed 
to  Richland  jail,  Columbia,  206; 
sent  to  the  Libby,  211;  sup- 
plied with  books  by  guard,  206; 
taken,  200;  under  suspicion  as 
spy,  205. 

Priuli,  Antonio,  doge  of  Venice, 
ancestor  of  the  Gallaudets,  125. 

Promoter,  dealing  with,  470. 

Prophet,  likeness  to,  495. 

Public  speaking,  careful  prepara- 
tion for,  325;  suffering  inci- 
dent to,  325. 

"Psychology,"  satire  upon,  59. 

QadayraT,  mentioned,  340. 

Qadees,  mentioned,  340;  transla- 
tion of,  343;  arriving  at  wells 
of,  342. 

Qadees,  Wady,  passing  through, 
341. 

Qasaymeh,  mentioned,  340. 
Questions,  answering  baffling,  471- 
472. 

Rabbinical  writings,  study  of,  in 
Kadesh-barnea,  359. 

Railroad,  annoyance  on,  251;  dis- 
cussion concerning  trans-con- 
tinental, 290;  Hartford,  Provi- 
dence and  Fishkill,  taking  po- 
sition in,  68;  New  York  and 
Stonington,  Gurdon  Trumbull 
director  in,  13;  Stonington  and 
Providence,  clerk  to  treasurer 
of,  43- 

Rallying  breaking  line,  224. 

Rankin,  President,  reference  to 
Henry  F.  Durant,  284. 

Rathbun,  Julius  G.,  co-worker  in 
Morgan  Street  Mission,  104. 

Rawlinson,  Prof.  George,  men- 
tioned, 321. 

Reality,  dominant  note  in  his  life, 
465. 

Red  Sea  crossing,  study  of,  360. 
Reform,  one-sidedness  in,  279. 


j  Regimental  Sunday-school,  organ- 
izing, 188. 

Reid,  Sir  Charles,  letter  from  to 
The  Sunday  School  Times,  307. 

Religious  conditions,  account  of  in 
period  1800-1852,  79-80. 

Report,  Seventh  Annual,  of  Phila- 
delphia Sunday  and  Adult 
School  Union,  quoted,  148. 

Republican:  party,  uniting  with, 
139;  State  Committee,  offered 
salaried  chairmanship  of,  168; 
resigning  from  State  Commit- 
tee, 160. 

Republican  State  Central  Commit- 
tee, appointed  member  of,  143. 
i   Research,  first  attempt  at,  118. 
j    Return  to  regiment,  217. 

Revelation     and     inspiration  de- 
I         fined,  472-473- 
I    Revivals  of  religion,  81. 

Rhode  Island,  canvass  of,  237. 
Rice,   Governor,   writing   for  The 

Sunday  School  Times,  309. 
Richards,  William,  mentioned,  42. 
Richardson,    Charles    F.,  literary 
editor     The     Sunday  School 
Times,  319. 
Riddle,  Prof.  AI.  B.,  characteriza- 
tion by,  322;  mentioned,  321. 
Robins,   Prof.   Henry   E.,  quoted, 
137. 

Robinson,    Dr.    Charles    S.,  334. 

Robinson,  Dr.  Edward,  claiming 
location  of  Kadesh-barnea  in 
'Arabah,  336;  mentioned,  343, 
359. 

Rodeph  Shalom  Synagogue,  pro- 
nouncing benediction  in,  466, 
467. 

Rodgers,  Commander  George  W., 
visiting,  199. 

Rodman,  Daniel  S.,  taught  by,  38. 

Rogers,  Professor  Robert  W.,  char- 
acterization by,  482. 

Rollins,  Edward  H.,  method  of 
political  canvass,  140. 

Rollins,  Honorable  E.  A.,  helping 
to  secure  article  for  The  Sun- 
day School  Times,  310. 

Rose,  H.  M.  Frigate  in  attack  on 
Stonington,  12. 

Rowlands,  the  Rev.  John,  discov- 
ery of  Kadesh-barnea,  336: 
justified  by  facts,  343;  men- 
tioned, 339;  nature  of  report 
on  Kadesh-barnea  discovery, 
339;  quoted  on  ScVa,  342. 

Sabbath:  danger  of  observing  no, 
170-172;  fight  for  closing  Cen- 
tennial Exposition  on,  303;  na- 
tional battle  for  observance  of, 
80. 


522 


Index 


Sailer,  T.  H.  Powers,  speaking  at 

invitation  of,  385. 
Salisbury,  Lord,  mentioned,  354. 
St.  Augustine,  holding  services  in, 

218;  return  to  regiment  in,  217. 
Sainte  Chapelle,  Paris,  impressions 

of,  447. 

San  Marco,  services  in  fortress  of, 
218. 

Satanic  sophistry,  434. 

Saunders,  Trelawney,  quoted  on 
Kadesh-barnea,  336. 

Saving  Life  and  Souls  in  the 
Army,  2x^-22,2. 

Sayce,  Professor  A.  H,,  character- 
ization by,  480;  estimate  of 
"The  Blood  Covenant,"  480; 
visit  to,  45 1-452.  _ 

SchafT,  Philip,  mentioned,  321,  337. 

School-days:  in  Stonington  Acad- 
emy, 38;  at  Williston  Semi- 
nary, 39. 

School  Fund,  Gurdon  Trumbull 
commissioner  of,  13. 

Schools,  infant,  introduced  into 
America,  38. 

Schweinitz,  the  Rev.  Paul  de,  an- 
swering letter  from,  473. 

Scott,  Gen.  Winfield,  seeing  in 
boyhood,  24, 

Scott,  the  Hon.  John,  helping  to 
secure  article  for  The  Sunday 
School  Times,  310.  - 

Scott-Pierce  Campaign,  making 
speech  in,  138. 

Scrivener,  Dr.  F.  H.  A.,  men- 
tioned, 321. 

Sears,  ex-President,  mentioned, 
321. 

Secretary,  appointed  for  Hartford 
County,  153. 

Secretary  for  New  England  De- 
partment Am.  S.  S.  Union,  ap- 
pointed, 237. 

Secrets  of  Power  in  Word  and 
Work,  235-252. 

SeVa,  rock  at  Kadesh-barnea,  342. 

Sermons:  collection  of,  498;  first 
as  chaplain,  186;  method  of 
preparation,  249;  written,  not 
extempore,  225. 

Shakespeare,  quoted,  503. 

Sharon,  Plain  of,  350. 

Shepherd's  pipe,  played  at  recep- 
tion, 468. 

"Shoes  and  Rations  for  a  Long 
March,"  his  army  sermons,  498. 

Shooting  man,  accidentally,  272. 

Showing  Reserve  Power  Towards 
Life's  Close, _  445-460. 

Shut-in,  beginning  the  life  of  a, 
486. 

Sicard,  Abbe,  mentioned,  125. 
Sigourney,    Mrs.    Lydia  Huntley, 


poem  on  Alice  Cogswell,  130- 
131- 

Silent  Comforter  in  chapel  tent, 
218. 

Sin  of  Worrying,  the,  394. 
Sinai,    memorable   experience  on, 
502. 

Sistine  Madonna,  mentioned,  446. 

Sketches,  making  in  prison,  207. 

Slosson,  Annie  Trumbull,  author 
New  England  stories,  18;  ento- 
mologist, 18;  member  of  Asy- 
lum Hill  Church,  295. 

Smith,  John  B.,  quoted,  241. 

Smoked  glass,  saying  about  street 
boy  with,  255. 

Snow,  praying  for,  119. 

Societies,  early  Sunday-school,  150- 
151. 

Soldier   Friendship   in   Field  and 

Prison,  A,  195-214. 
Somerset,  Lady,  quoted,  475. 
South,    writing    to    home  papers 

from,  250. 
Sparhawk,    John,   Jr.,  mentioned, 

398. 

Speer,  Robert  E.,  speaking  of 
Trumbull  at  Northfield,  387; 
acquaintance  with,  begun  at 
Princeton,  413;  letters  to,  412, 
414,  415,  416;  remark  on  "A 
Lie  Never  Justifiable,"  422; 
speaking  at  funeral  service,  500; 
visits  to  and  from,  414. 

Spiritual  Awakening,  The,  79-100. 

Spontaneity,  intolerant  of,  326. 

Springfield  Republican,  writing 
for,  237. 

Spurgeon,  hearing  in  London,  333. 
Spy,  under  suspicion  as,  205^ 
Stanley,   Dean,   invited  to  service 

by,  332;  mentioned,  321. 
Stanton,  Dr.  George  D.,  as  boy  in 

Trumbull's  class,  44. 
Stanton,  Edmund  D.,  as  an  editor 

of   "Lux   Mundi,"    55;  writes 

Trumbull    about    relation  to 

Christ,  82. 
Stanton,   Miss  Grace,  38. 
Stanton,   Thomas,   descendant  of, 

10. 

Star  and  Democrat,  writing  for, 
57-59- 

State's  Prison,  addressing  inmates 
of,  167. 

Steamboat  case,  398. 

Stevens,  Bishop,  mentioned,  469. 

Stonington,  attacked  by  H.  M. 
Frigate  Rose,  12;  center  of  his- 
torical interest,  22;  defense  of 
in  1814,  12;  leaving  in  1851, 
67;  location  of,  11;  naming 
streets  in,  50;  Trumbulls  re- 
move to,  II. 


Index 


523 


Stowe:  Harriet  Beecher,  mention- 
ed, 295;  Prof.  Calvin  E.,  mem- 
ber of  Asylum  Hill  Church, 
295- 

Stryker,  Dr.  S.  S,,  mentioned,  331. 

Stuart,  George  H.,  entertained 
by,  167;  mentioned,  316. 

Stuart,  Isaac  VV.,  leading  political 
meeting,  138. 

Student  Conferences,  attending, 
413;  New  England  at  Middle- 
town,  mentioned,  385. 

Studd,  G.  B.,  at  Northfield,  383. 

Study,  first  interest  in,  42. 

Substitute  evil,  concern  over,  225. 

Suez,  leaving  for  desert,  334. 

Suffering,  capacity  for,  404. 

Sulayman,  Shaykh,  deceiving  trav- 
elers, 337;  unavailable  as  guide, 
338. 

Sumner,     Charles,     on  platform 

with,  250. 
Sumter  Day,  S.  S-  activities  on, 

176. 

Sunday  closing.  Centennial  Expo- 
sition, 303,  306. 

Sunday  School  Times,  The,  article 
with  reference  to  Lesson  Sys- 
tem, 301;  Bishop  Ellicott's 
opinion  of,  355;  Centennial  is- 
sue of,  306;  becoming  editor  of, 
292-296;  bought  from  John 
Wanamaker,  315;  first  article 
for,  167;  first  issue  of,  167; 
large  circulation  necessary,  302; 
symposium  issue  on  Bible  study, 
321;  transfer  to  John  Wana- 
maker, 316;  Washington's 
Birthday,  issue  of,  308;  posi- 
tive, not  negative,  395. 

Sunday  School  Field  Work  in  the 
Fifties,  147-172. 

Sunday  School  World,  conducting 
department  in,  289. 

Supporting  Sunday-schools  from 
church  funds,  282. 

Swearing,  detailed  to  do  the,  223. 

System,  pursuing  a,  248. 

Swan,  Sarah  Ann,  mother  of 
Henry  Clay  Trumbull,  10. 

Sympathy,  power  of,  478. 

Syrian  guests  at  reception,  467. 

Taber  NACLE  Presbyterian  Church, 
mentioned,  331. 

Tablet,  discovering  in  British  Mu- 
seum, 448-449. 

Tablet,  memorial  in  Gallaudet  Col- 
lege, 126. 

Talmadge,  Henry  G.,  quoted,  393. 

Tawarah  tribes,  mentioned,  334, 
337. 

"Teaching  and  Teachers,"  de- 
scription of,  365-366. 


Teachers'   Department,  conducting 

in  Sunday  School  World,  289. 
Teachers,    providentially  provided 

for  him,  496. 
Teeyahah,    secretiveness   of,  337; 

transferred  to  care  of,  335. 
Temperament,  description  of,  3. 
Temperance,  address  on,  51,  53. 
Temptation,    to    change    work  on 

account  of  salary,  246. 
Tennyson  quoted,  270. 
"Ten  Commandments,  A  Covenant 

of  Love,"  study  of,  383. 
Terabeen  tribe,  mentioned,  337. 
Theater,    discussion    of    the,  428, 
_  430. 

Thinking,  boyhood  training  in,  14. 

Thompson,  Robert  Ellis,  character- 
ization by,  475;   quoted,  420. 

Thomson,  W.  M.,  mentioned,  321, 
337. 

Thoroughness  in  "Kadesh-barnea," 
359- 

"Threshold  Covenant,  The,"  ac- 
count of,  453-454- 

Titles,  care  in  choosing,  263; 
characteristic,  in  writing,  399. 

Tobacco,  using,  views  of,  424-426. 

Todd,  John,  heard  in  boyhood,  41. 

Toronto,  attending  institute  in, 
292. 

Toy,  Prof.  C.  H.,  engaged  for  The 
Sunday   School    Times,  308. 

Tuch,  Prof.,  approving  Rowlands' 
site  of  Kadesh-barnea,  336. 

Travel,  extensiveness  of  in  Sun- 
day-school work,  290. 

Tremont  Temple,  speaking  in,  167. 

Trumbull:  Alice  Gallaudet,  men- 
tioned, 295;  Annie,  mentioned, 
18;  Annie  Eliot,  mentioned, 
15.  295;  Annie  Slosson,  men- 
tioned, 295;  Charles  Edward, 
as  an  orator  commended  by 
Wendell  Phillips,  16;  Charles 
Edward,  at  Williams  and  Vale, 
17;  Charles  Edward,  death  of, 
17;  Charles  Gallaudet.  mention- 
ed, 295;  Charles  Gallaudet,  on 
Karlsbad  trip,  446;  Charles 
Gallaudet,  preparation  for  edi- 
torial work.  419;  Colonel  John, 
of  Washington's  staff,  23;"  Fan- 
ny, mentioned.  295;  "Brother 
Jonathan,"  mentioned.  10;  Gur- 
don,  appointed  postmaster,  13: 
his  activity  in  politics,  30;  as 
bank  director,  13;  commission- 
er of  school  fund.  13;  farewell 
words  to  H.  C.  T.  on  leaving 
home,  63;  in  management  of 
first  railroad  in  Stonington,  11; 
interest  in  whaling  and  sealing, 
13;  legal  adviser  to  neighbors, 


524 


Index 


13;  letter  from,  to  Henry  al 
Williston,  40;  member  of  State 
House  of  Representatives,  13; 
member  of  State  Senate,  13; 
sharing  in  defense  of  Stoning- 
ton,  12;  receiving  President 
Tyler,  22;  self  educated,  12; 
Gurdon,  jr.,  artist  and  orni- 
thologist, 18;  Henry,  uncle  of 
H.  C.  T.,  11;  Henry  Camp, 
mentioned,  295;  James  Ham- 
mond, article  on,  by  Mark 
Twain,  15;  James  Hammond, 
member  of  Asylum  Hill  Church, 
295 ;  James  Hammond,  scholarly 
achievements  of,  14;  John  of 
Charlestown,  Massachusetts,  10 ; 
John  of  Norwich  Town,  Con- 
necticut, 10;  John  F.,  uncle  of 
H.  C.  T.,  11;  Katharine  Gal- 
laudet,  mentioned,  295;  Mary, 
as  an  editor  of  '%ux  Mundi," 
55 ;  Mary  Prime,  mentioned, 
29s;  Mary,  sister  of  Henry, 
16;  Thomas  Swan,  brother  of 
Henry,  17;  Samuel,  uncle  of 
Henry,  1 1 ;  Sophia  Gallaudet, 
mentioned,  295. 

Truth,  looking  at  from  another 
corner,  264;  love  of,  4;  su- 
premacy of,  taught  as  great 
lesson,  500. 

Twain,  Mark,  entertaining  in 
Philadelphia,  469;  reference  to 
J.  Hammond  Trumbull,  15; 
member  of  Asylum  Hill  Church, 
295- 

Twichell,  The  Rev,  Joseph  H., 
characterization  by,  243;  pas- 
tor of  Asylum  Hill  Church,. 
296. 

Tyng,  Dr.,  on  preaching  to  chil- 
dren, 280. 

Tyler,  President  John,  speaking  of 
Stonington  cannon,  23;  visit 
to  Stonington,  22. 

Umbrella,  incident  of  returning, 
61. 

Under  fire,  first  time,  190. 
Uniform  lesson  adopted,  290. 
Uninvited  guests,  at  Dothan,  347. 
Union,   American   Sunday  School, 

begins  new  S.  S.  era,  80. 
Unitine  with  church,  95,  99. 
Upper  Room,  The,  491-504. 
Useless,  duty  of  striving  to  render 

one's  self,  399. 
Uiniversity    of    Pennsylvania,  in 

archaeological  work  of,  481. 

Vacation,  opinion  of,  453;  unable 
to  bear  thought  of,  247. 


Van  Buren,  Vice-President  Mar- 
tin, seeing  in  boyhood,  22. 

Vanderbilt,  Cornelius,  president  of 
Stonington  and  Providence  R. 
R.,  43. 

Van  Zandt,  Governor,  writing  for 
The  Sunday  School  Times,  310. 

"Verify,"  office  watchword,  393. 

Verse,  destroying  his  manuscripts 
of,  128. 

"Victorious  in  Death  and  in  Life," 
sermon  quoted,  502. 

Vincent,  Bishop  John  H.,  char- 
acterization by,  484;  invited  to 
succeed,  239;  mentioned,  316. 

Vocabulary  of  speaker  not  that  of 
writer,  300. 

Wady  Jeroor,  camping  in,  339. 
Walking,     growing    difficulty  in, 
492. 

Wall  of  Egypt,  Great,  360, 
Walnut      Street  Presbyterian 
Church,    finding   church  home 
in,    299;    funeral    services  in, 
499. 

Wanamaker,  John,  buying  The 
Sunday  School  Times  from, 
315;  .characterization  by,  315; 
conversation  with  about  editor- 
ship, 293;  seeking  editor  for 
The  Sunday  School  Times,  292; 
suggesting  trip  abroad,  446. 

"War  Memories,"  writing  early 
chapters,  445. 

Warner,  Charles  Dudley,  member 
of  Asylum  Hill  Church,  295. 

Washington's  Birthday,  issue  of 
The  Sunday  School  Times,  308. 

Wattles,  George  H.,  mentioned, 
332;  John  D.,  characteristics 
of,  319;  death  of,  416;  finding 
of,  274-276;  illness  in  Florida, 
406-407;  praying  with  about 
The  Sunday  School  Times,  302; 
walking  with,  376. 

Wayland,  President  Francis,  quot- 
ed on  "infant  schools,"  147. 

Wayland,  the  Rev.  Dr.  H.  L.,  on 
Trumbull's   hard  work,  458. 

Webster,  Dr.  John  W.,  trial  of, 
57-59- 

Weld,  ly.  ly.,  teacher  in  boyhood, 
42. 

Weld,  Miss  Agnes  Grace,  niece  of 

Tennyson,     copying  Kadesh- 

barnea,  451-452. 
Welles,  Charles  P.  &  Co.,  partner 

in  firm  of,  139. 
Wequetequock    Sunday-  school, 

teacher  in,  44;  superintendent 

of,  44. 

Whaling,  Gurdon  Trumbull  inter- 
ested in,  13. 


Index 


525 


Whistler,  James  McNeill,  boyhood 
playmate  of,  27. 

Whittle,  Major,  mentioned,  387. 

Williams,  Canon,  mentioned,  336. 

Williams,  Chief  Justice,  Henry's 
first  S.  S.  teacher,  8c;  Presi- 
dent of  American  and  Foreign 
Sabbath  Union,  80. 

Williams  College,  Charles  Edward 
Trumbull  at,  17. 

Williams,  Miss  Bessie  S.,  as  an 
editor  of  "Lux  Mundi,"  55. 

Williams,  S.  Wells,  mentioned, 
493- 

Williston  Seminary,  attending,  39; 

preaching  at,  249. 
Wilson,  Vice-President  Henry,  led 

to  Christ  by  Henry  F.  Durant, 
.283. 

Window,  protecting  man  in  prison, 
208. 

Wing,  Dr.  Yung,  quoted,  127. 
Winslow,    Miron,  148,  493. 
Winter  closing  of  S.  S.,  165-166. 
World's    Student    Conference  at 

Northfield,  383. 
Woodruff,  Albert,  attracted  to  H. 

C.  T.,  153. 
Wool    business,    connection  with, 

144. 


Work,  learning  to,  in  midst  of 
confusion,  43;  new  ideas  of, 
74. 

Wounded    man,    holding  jugular 

vein  of,  222. 
Wright,  Dr.  William,  of  London, 

reporting   EHicott's  opinion  of 

The  Sunday  School  Times,  356. 
Wrinkles,  cost  of,  406. 
Writing,  habits  of,  247;  on  cars, 

238;     setting    limitations  for, 

326;  with  effort,  476. 

Yale  College,  Charles  Edward 
Trumbull  attending,  17;  given 
Master  of  Arts  degree  by,  238; 
Lectures  on  the  Sunday-school, 
377;  preaching  at,  249;  Semitic 
Club,  lecture  to,  407. 

"Yankee  Hospital,"  ministrations 
in,  202. 

Yohannah  el-Karey,  349. 

Yonge,  Charlotte  M.,  mentioned, 
321. 

Yosemite  Valley,  first  sight  of, 
291. 

Young    men's    prayer-meeting  in 

Hartford,  88. 
Young  Men's  City  Mission  Society 

organized,  103. 


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HIGHSMITH  #45115 

